Australian Vignerons has written to its members advising that its board and that of the Winemakers’ Federation of Australia are in the process of formally discussing what a merger of the two organisations would look like.

Chief executive of Australian Vignerons Anna Hooper said in the email that the two organisations had been holding discussions to create a single advocacy body to represent the interests of grapegrowers and winemakers in response to calls for reform of the industry’s representative bodies.

She said both organisations were working with external legal advisors to develop the structure of the merged organisation.

“Our aim through this proposed amalgamation is to strengthen the voice of our industry in Canberra, increase efficiency and most importantly, ensure the interests of our members are advocated for at the highest level,” Hooper said.

“The Federal Government has advised that representation from a single body for the grape and wine sector would not only be welcomed, but also strengthen advocacy efforts.

“We believe that a single body will deliver better outcomes for grapegrowers and winemakers and will lead to sustainable long-term national representation for the Australian grape and wine sector.”

The email outlined the next steps on the path to amalgamation:

• development of a draft constitution for the united body
• release of a discussion paper outlining the governance and operational aspects of the united body
• voting papers to be sent to members (by 22 October 2018)
• Meeting of members on 13 November 2018 to vote on the amalgamation.

“The work we have achieved over many years to ensure the interests of grapegrowers are advocated for will continue. We look forward to being able to deliver more for our members, and the sector as a whole, should the membership of both AV and WFA support the proposed reform,” Hooper said.