By Andrew Starke
NSW Premier Kristina Keneally has visited the Bright Food Store in Shanghai to see first-hand how NSW wine producers are progressing in China, now the fourth largest export market for Australian wines.
The Hunter Valley based Tyrrell’s Wines and Brokenwood Wines are distributed through the Bright Food Store – the largest food company in China with 3,300 stores and e-commerce networks, worth more than $16 billion.
The company is known to be interested in some wine assets owned by the Foster's Group in Australia, including some Hunter Valley brands.
In 2009, Australian wine exports to China and Hong Kong increased by 57 percent over the previous year – worth $181.5 million.
During the visit Keneally met with the Chairman of the Bright Foods Group, Wang Zong Nan and discussed ways to promote the sale and distribution of NSW wine in China’s growing market.
This builds on the Memorandum of Understanding NSW signed earlier this year with the Bright Food Group and the China Development Bank to help support the sale of NSW products in Chinese retail outlets.
Tyrrell Wines was established in 1858 and is a family owned business with six vineyards across the country, including two in the Hunter Valley.
The company has received support from Industry and Investment NSW and participated in NSW trade missions to China since it began exports to the country in 1996.
China is now Tyrrell’s second largest export market and fastest growing global market.
Tyrrell’s Wines are also featured in the Australian Pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo through a partnership with NSW Industry and Investment.
Brokenwood Wines was established in 1970 by a group of hobby winemakers and has since grown into one of NSW’s leading wineries, exporting to Asia, America and Europe.
Keneally said the success of Australian wine exports in China demonstrated the quality of NSW wine.
“We have a first-class wine industry in NSW and it’s great to see producers such as Tyrrells and Brokenwood showcasing Hunter Valley wine on an international scale,” she said.
“The wine industry in NSW has trebled in the last decade and the growing market of China offers considerable opportunities for wine producers in our State.”