Services and community interactions

Service on boards and committees:

Viticulture and Oenology (DVO)

DVO

Dr Wessel du Toit: board member: South African Society for Enology and Viticulture (SASEV)
Anneli Bosman: raadslid: SASEV;  chairperson: Viticulture and Oenology Forum of SASEV
Dr Albert Strever: Assistant Editor, SAJEV journal; member: Winetech Technology Transfer Committee.

Community interaction:

Viticulture and Oenology (DVO) & Institute for Wine Biotechnology (IWBT)
The DVO makes wine on a small scale for the KWV and other role players in the industry (usually to test different clones). The Department is involved in various projects to transfer technology to the community. Staff members are invited on an ongoing basis to serve on evaluation panels for the wine industry’s VinPro Vineyard Block Competition. Workshops are held regularly under the auspices of SASEV for table grape growers in Stellenbosch and Paarl, while the Department also participates in numerous other workshops and forums for SASEV. The STIAS/Perold vineyard project is an ongoing concern that involves a number of players in the wine industry, including the Pinotage Association, and also provides training in young vine development for trainee viticultural workers from underprivileged communities. During 2011 the Department presented several short courses on vine growing for small producers and garagiste winemakers. There also is regular involvement in the Wine Evaluation Committee of the Wine and Spirits Board at Nietvoorbij. The Department continues to support the Elgin Learning Foundation with staff training and regular visits during the harvest to ensure that everything in the winery is running smoothly. In 2011, the Department was actively involved in supporting and advising the Dame Hilary Cropper Foundation, a British charitable trust that is establishing a centre for education and training for young people in the wine industry in South Africa. Marianne McKay was seconded to the Advisory Board for this initiative.  

The IWBT staff members are actively involved on an ongoing basis with the Kayamandi-based Khuyasa Project, giving additional classes in the biological sciences to learners at local schools. They have also been involved in workshops at Infruitec in Stellenbosch.