South Africa wine production drying up in water crisis

24 April 2018, 2:25 pm

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South Africa is set for a steep decline in wine production in 2018 as the country grapples with a water crisis ravaging Cape Town and surrounding areas, a Paris-based global organization says.

Africa’s top wine producer is set to produce 8.6 million hectoliters of wine this year, down 20.4 percent down from 2017, the International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIV) says in a statement.

The Western Cape region has gone without significant rains for more than three years, forcing South Africa’s second city to slash residential water consumption.

While cautiously welcoming the water shortage’s impact on improved grape flavors, South African winemakers have been struggling with the drought, which has sown panic across the Cape Town area.

— AFP