Free Trade Agreement
The United Kingdom Free Trade agreement, which came into force on 31 May, is very positive for the New Zealand wine industry, says Sarah Wilson, NZW General Manager of Advocacy and General Counsel.
New Levy Rate
On 24 June 2021, the New Zealand Winegrowers (NZW) Board set the following levy rates for the year 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022:
These rates are set by NZW pursuant to clause 11 of the Commodity Levies (Winegrapes) Order 2016 and clause 9 of the Wine (Grape Wine Levy) Order 2016.
If you have any questions, please contact our advocacy team at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Upcoming Levy Vote
This coming September, growers and wineries will be asked to cast their votes on the future of the grape and wine levies which fund NZW.
Timeframes
What am I being asked to vote on?
There are two votes being held simultaneously - one on the grape levy and another on the wine levy. Some NZW members will be eligible to vote for one levy, and others will be eligible to vote in both.
The NZW Board has not recommended any change to the key levy parameters that members have been familiar with over the past five years. This means it is proposed that:
How will the vote work?
The vote is being administered by an independent organisation, Electionz.com,who have run other recent elections for NZW (including our 2020 Board elections).Your voting forms will come from Electionz.com rather than from NZW, so keep an eye out for these in your inbox.
To get a positive result in the grape levy referendum requires that, of those members who vote, 50 percent by number and 50 percent by value of levy payment must vote in favour of the levy. For wine, the requirement is 60 percent voting in favour. If the levy orders are renewed,this will take effect on 1 July 2022 for a further six years.