Winemaking is growing in popularity in southern Illinois, much like Oklahoma, but five larger vineyards currently dominate the market.
Annet Lofton helped start a vineyard in 2000 on the Illinois farm she shared with her parents. They soon began looking to team up with other grape growers in the area who were too small to individually produce and market wine. This year a group of less than a dozen small southern Illinois vineyard operators joined together to form a strategic coalition.
About $300,000 in state and federal grants helped the families start the cooperative, which includes a 4,000-square-foot building, a production area and retail section in front for wine tastings. The group also received a small grant for a demonstration vineyard, and Heath and a winemaker will be paid salaries.
Producer Partnerships can be a very effective strategy for small vineyard owners to find a profitable niche in the developing market of wine grapes in this part of the country. They are especially important in light of the current divisons between wine producers and wine retailers in many states.
AP Wire 12/11/2004 - Eleven small vineyard operators in southern Illinois form a cooperative
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