Vinehealth Australia is receiving feedback from SA growers who are worried about the cleanliness of grape bins being delivered to their vineyards and the potential that dirty bins create for pest and disease spread.
Unfortunately, this is not a new issue for growers during vintage. And it’s time to ask the question: who’s responsible for cleaning grape bins?
Vinehealth Australia calls on wineries, growers and owners of bins to acknowledge that grape bins can be a vector for pest and disease spread, and to share responsibility for cleaning the bins of soil and vine material.
As part of this, wineries and processing facilities play an integral role in ensuring grape bins leaving their sites are clean of soil and vine material.
“For many years, lack of bin cleanliness was blamed on a lack of water at wineries,” said Suzanne McLoughlin, Vinehealth Australia Technical Manager.
“While we know access to water can still be an issue, we urge all wineries to show leadership in the biosecurity space and focus on improving bin cleanliness to ensure grape bins being delivered to growers arrive clean of soil and vine material. Take this opportunity to use bin cleanliness as an external advertisement of your commitment to biosecurity.”
For more information about grape bin cleanliness, phone Vinehealth Australia on (08) 8273 0550.