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Wine tourism
Wine tourism as a development as a development
initiative in rural Canary Island initiative
communities
291
Lynnaire Sheridan and Abel Duarte Alonso
School of Marketing Tourism and Leisure, Edith Cowan University,
Joondalup, Australia, and
Pascal Scherrer
School of Natural Sciences, Centre for Ecosystem Management,
Edith Cowan University, Joondalup, Australia

Abstract
Purpose – Many studies underline the critical relationship between local communities and rural-based
industries. However, the dynamics of the relationship between wineries and local communities is
rarely considered in research despite the importance of these links for rural communities. This paper
investigates this dimension from the perspective of Canary Islands’ small wine growers.
Design/methodology/approach – A total of 23 winery operations located on the islands of
Tenerife and La Palma accept the invitation to participate in the form of face-to-face interviews.
Findings – The level of participation and contribution to the community varies between operations,
with some small family operations in particular limiting their external involvement, while others see it
as a necessary and/or beneficial relationship. Most wineries in the study are active in their
communities, participating in local events and employing local residents. However, generational
changes that threaten both the wine business and tradition, or mass tourism leading to land value
increases are critical challenges to the winery-community relationship.
Research limitations/implications – With over 200 largely small-family wineries in the Canary
Islands, it is acknowledged that the sample of wineries in this paper may not be representative of the
region’s wine industry.
Practical implications – The strengthening relationships between wineries and local communities
for cultural events can build nostalgia for local wine production. This, in turn, appears to be vital for
preserving the local wine culture and tradition by making winery ownership and work well-regarded
by the local community.
Originality/value – To date limited research has been conducted on the redeveloping Canary
Islands’ wine industry, particularly from winery operators’ points of view.
Keywords Wines, Winemaking, Rural regions, Spain, Tourism
Paper type Research paper

Introduction and literature review

Wine tourism and rural communities
In recent years, there has been a trend of businesses becoming more involved with local
communities, particularly strengthening partnerships (Boehm, 2005), whereby
Journal of Enterprising Communities:
communities often reciprocate by actively supporting business development (Besser People and Places in the Global
and Miller, 2004). Within a rural context, the relationship between rural industries and Economy
Vol. 3 No. 3, 2009
their communities is an important focus of rural development research. In fact, despite pp. 291-305
the argument that “Tourism provides challenges for communities all around the q Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1750-6204
world” (Simpson, 2008, p. 5), many studies identify the potential links between tourism DOI 10.1108/17506200910982037
JEC and rural communities, as well as tourism’s supporting role in such process
3,3 (Wilson et al., 2001; Williams, 2001; Choi and Sirakaya, 2006; Petrzelka et al., 2006;
Ballesteros and Ramı́rez, 2007). In particular, festivals and events based around rural
products are growing in popularity (Higham and Ritchie, 2001), as is “agritourism”,
which, according to Langworthy et al. (2006, p. 2):
[. . .] is an excellent tool to educate the [national] community about the value of agriculture to
292 the economy and quality of life especially when a country’s residents are increasingly
removed from the land.
The benefit of tourism has primarily been the generation of employment and the
diversification of marginalised rural economies (Di Gregorio and Licari, 2006). As
globalisation progressively threatens traditional agriculture, tourism may become a
necessity to support the continuation of traditional production in rural areas (Eversole
and Martin, 2006).
VanAusdle (2005) has identified wine tourism as a particularly appropriate rural
tourism product. Wine production can help rural areas redesign their economies
through job creation for both wine production and the hospitality associated with fine
dining. Many examples of newly developing wine regions exist (Sharples, 2002; Read,
2004; Getz and Brown, 2006; Wargenau and Che, 2006). The availability and
development of wine routes (Gatti and Incerti, 1997), or wine tourism (Hall et al., 2000c;
Hall and Mitchell, 2000; O’Neill et al., 2001, 2002) generally plays a pivotal role in
attracting visitors to rural areas which, in turn, benefit local economies and communities
(Hall et al., 2000a).
Events such as wine and food festivals, in turn, provide opportunities for local
communities to establish a destination identity as they can “promote the importance of
local tourism resources to the outside world” (Inbakaran and Jackson, 2005, p. 324).
In some Mediterranean rural areas, for example, wine cellars can be additional
attractions, connecting the wine product with underground architecture (Fuentes Pardo
and Cañas Guerrero, 2005). Furthermore, wine and tourism can reinforce local
identity and contribute to social wellbeing (Gibson and Weinberg, 1980; Telfer and
Wall, 1996, in Telfer, 2001; Arfini et al., 2002).
While more wine regions and trails are being developed worldwide (Bigongiari, 2003;
Fensterseifer, 2007; Hall et al., 2000a; Jaffe and Pasternak, 2004; Rabellotti and Morrison,
2006; Sharples, 2002), traditional wine regions in decay are being revitalised (Garcı́a
Fernández, 1999) – not to compete in the global wine market but, instead in an attempt
to boost the local economy via small scale wine production and potentially wine tourism.
However, all is not well in the relationship between community and wine producing
operations. For example, Friedland (2000) explains the dramatic developments in Napa
Valley, California, where the expansion of vineyards had significant negative impacts
on the local population, including increased land development, heavy traffic during
periods of harvesting, increased water usage or environmental damage due to extensive
vineyard planting (Tesconi, 1999, in Friedland, 2000). Another argument is that as a
result of the growth and prosperity of their local wine industries some wine regions
have experienced the negative effects of a rapid increase in tourism, as Griffith (2007)
found in a study conducted in Walla Walla, Washington, USA. An example of the wine
industry in New Zealand, where significant growth has been experienced in recent
years, further demonstrates potential downsides of this sector with regards to the Wine tourism
community: as a development
[. . .] increasing numbers of outsiders have created new community impacts and new tensions initiative
[. . .] and potential contradictions between the development of Marlborough as a wine tourist
destination and site of a large-scale industrial production (Beer and Lewis, 2006, p. 96).
The downside of the success of the wine sector is further illustrated in the rise of land 293
prices in some New Zealand rural communities (Winestate Magazine, 2005; Law, 2007).
Although this situation is already concerning, pressures on land, water and labour are
set to continue as the wine industry is poised for a continued phenomenal growth in
years to come (Nikiel, 2007). Thus, while wine tourism has the potential to create
considerable economic and social benefits for local development, it can also be the root
of many issues and problems for rural communities.

The Canary Islands context

Traditionally a mass tourism destination, with close to ten million visitors per year
(Canary Institute of Statistics, 2007), the Canary Islands are striving for a more
fulfilling type of tourism-driven economic development. In fact, because of its large
volume of visitors, a phenomenon that reflects the importance of tourism in Spain
(Garı́n-Muñoz, 2007) there is a view that tourism is a key determinant of economic
development for the archipelago (Garı́n-Muñoz, 2006, p. 282). However, after so many
decades of presence, mass tourism has failed to create the local opportunities and
benefits that smaller-scale quality tourism products could achieve. Recently, the
advent of rural and agrotourism in the islands (Parra López and Calero Garcı́a, 2006)
offer some visitor segments an alternative to the “typical” sun and beach elements of
numerous mass tourism destinations. Within this dimension, the ability of operators of
rural tourism and related concepts in offering unique and enjoyable experiences is
fundamental in building a sustainable tourism industry within a region (Keen, 2004).
In addition, the Canary Islands provide an example of a traditional wine region that is
being revived, in part, to capture the potentially higher yield wine tourist.
Wine has been a component of the islands’ culture and agricultural heritage for many
centuries (Garcı́a Fernández, 1999; El Dı́a, 2001). However, harsh production conditions,
changes in external trade and vine diseases meant that for generations the local wine
industry fell into oblivion. More recently, the establishment of systems of protection
and valorisation of quality foods (Sainz, 2002) has been a turning point for the local
wine industry. Moreover, fundamental to this rebirth of wine production has been the
introduction of “Designations of Origin” (DO) (Sainz, 2002; Martı́nez-Carrasco et al.,
2005) for Canary Islands’ wines. Regulatory councils oversee more efficient production
methods, and the quality of the wine product while protecting and promoting local wines
(Godenau and Suárez Sosa, 2002; Godenau et al., 2000). This event has drastically
changed what, until recently, had been an informal wine industry.
Today ten regions with DO have been created in the archipelago, of which five alone
are based on the island of Tenerife, and one on the island of La Palma (La Reserva,
2006). Added to these events are the will and interest of local winery operators to
improve techniques and production methods to obtain a product of increased quality
(Garcı́a Fernández, 1999). This quality product, added to the large number of visitors to
the islands, provides an opportunity for wine tourism.
JEC Arguably a certain degree of nostalgia to keep a tradition alive has also helped in
3,3 the re-development of the local wine industry. While providing jobs to local inhabitants
where the wineries are located, and helping maintain the community fabric, the “new”
wine industry in the Canaries also offers tourists an alternative leisure activity beyond
the package tours for which the region is renowned (McLane, 2000).
In order for wine tourism to emerge as a contributor to the economic development of
294 the Canary Islands, it is imperative that the wine industry itself engages with both the
tourism industry and the broader community. This exploratory study focussed on the
crucial perspective of the wineries on tourism and the local community to understand
the perceived potential role, impacts or benefits for their businesses and the broader
community.

Methodology
The investigation of an industry experiencing development in the sense of a revival,
with emphasis on quality (DO), and new developments in the form of the establishment
of wine trails suggests the potential for synergies between wineries and local
communities. In this regard, a first step into the exploration of Canary Islands’ wine
industry and the extent of its relationship with local communities was to examine
winery operators’ views on their involvement with their local community.
In May 2007, 61 wineries in the Canary Islands archipelago, 45 on Tenerife and 16
on La Palma were identified through database searches. The early establishment of DO
in Tenerife, namely, in the Tacoronte-Acentejo region, and the large number of
wineries within its geographical boundaries were compelling reasons for choosing this
region as a starting point in the study. The knowledge of one of the researchers of
La Palma Island, its wineries, coupled with current efforts among winery operations to
develop wine tourism were reasons for studying this island’s wine industry.
A letter explaining the study’s objectives was sent to each winery, formally
requesting interviews with owners or managers and winemakers. All the chosen
wineries had gained DO status and had at least one wine label. In late May and early
June 2007, one of the researchers travelled to Tenerife and La Palma and established
direct contact with each winery. This timing avoided any major events or busy periods
for wineries, such as harvesting or pruning. A total of 23 wineries, 15 on Tenerife and
eight on La Palma Island agreed to face-to-face interviews, a 37.7 per cent response
rate. All operations are small in size, that is, fewer than 20 employees and
predominantly family owned. It is acknowledged that the number of participating
wineries may not allow for making generalisations about the archipelago’s wine
industry, or its wineries’ relationship with local communities or wine tourism.
However, this effort was intended to be a first approach to examine the local wine
industry, which in turn would set the scene for building networks between the
researchers and local grape growers and industry officials with the final goal to study
this industry and wine tourism using a longitudinal approach.
Semi-structured interviews were conducted at the wineries, and on interviewees’
terms, that is, allowing them to choose a convenient day and time to be interviewed.
While the central theme in this study was the relationship between wineries and their
local community, additional interview questions were designed to explore wineries’
background, their relationship to tourism, whether they were open to the public, and if
so in what form, as well as business and other challenges wineries faced. Interviews
ranged between 15 minutes and an hour and allowed interviewees to comment on Wine tourism
aspects affecting the local wine industry and their businesses. Interviews were as a development
recorded, transcribed and translated from Spanish into English by the researchers.
The qualitative data software NVivo 7 was used to assist data management initiative
and analysis.

Findings and discussion 295

Employment of the local community
Overall, the wine tourism literature (Hall et al., 2000b) suggests that, in an ideal
scenario, the development of wine tourism should generate employment for the local
community, increase profits to local wine producers, encourage institutional support
for wine production, enhance the social aspects of community development and
reinforce the very wine culture upon which the wine tourism industry depends. These
ideals will now be considered with reference to the Canary Islands scenario.

Employment generation for the local community

Currently, wineries in need of external labour employed staff from the local region or
drew on help from family members during harvesting time as in the case of small,
family-owned wineries that are otherwise largely self-reliant in terms of labour. In all,
13 wineries currently provide employment to locals. Comments such as “all our
employees live within 20 kilometres of the winery” or “during harvesting season we
use labour from the village” and “we employ all local people” reflect the close
connection to the local community and labour market. Nevertheless, one operator also
indicated that the need for external staff was minimised as much as possible due to
high labour costs. “We want to curtail fixed costs and therefore we only employ what
we essentially need, not more”. At the other end, another business owner indicated that
it was at times difficult to find staff and that employment agencies were looking
outside the region for workers.
Indeed, Canary Island wineries appear to be beginning to take employment matters
into their own hands by making significant contributions to building the capacity of
the locals so that they would develop the expertise required to play a more significant
role in wine production. Two wineries were doing this by investing in education and
training, and three of the 13 wineries employing locals were providing youth
employment, addressing a critical issue in their rural community. One respondent
stated that “We support local professional schools; we hire young viticulture students.
Sometimes, girls are not welcome at wineries, but we give them an opportunity to work
at the winery”. Therefore, not only were the wineries employing locals but they were
also assisting particularly vulnerable groups within the local community, in this case
the young and women, in a traditionally male-dominated industry.
Youth employment was common with another winery manager explaining “We
collaborate with both local schools and teach the young kids; it is a way for them to
learn something new and have a perspective of the future. At the same time, it is an
opportunity for them to make some money”. Another operator provided an educational
component by opening the winery to school visits: “We also have group visits from
schools and we try to have children positively engaged in wine culture, including
emphasising on drinking with moderation”. Such an initiative could have positive
impacts among future wine consumers, namely, in the form of gained knowledge about
JEC the importance of preserving the islands’ wine heritage, as well as awareness of
3,3 enjoying the local wine product in a healthy, controlled manner.
Overall, the current economic benefit of wine-based employment in the Canary
Islands appears to be less than some other developing wine regions. In Walla Walla in
the USA, for example, wine has not only diversified the local agricultural economy but
also increased employment opportunities for locals in the tourism and hospitality
296 sectors (VanAusdle, 2005). A key point of difference may be that Walla Walla has
industry-relevant training programs well underway with groups of over 70 students.
According to Poitras and Getz (2006), training is vital as it ensures that locals can
develop services and generate employment rather than rely on skilled employees
relocating to the area.
The potential for wineries to make a positive impact on their community is also
reflected in developing wine regions of South Africa. In this context, Johnson et al. (2007,
p. 139) illustrate the involvement of several wineries in the establishment of community
projects, including the promotion of services in the areas of health, education and
recreation. In terms of education, facilitating or promoting scholarship awards for
young individuals in the community to study at agricultural colleges ( Johnson et al.,
2007) is yet another aspect that underlines the extent to which wineries can “connect”
with local communities in an effort to secure the future continuation of a local industry.
The fact that Canary Island wineries are only just recognising the importance of
education and training may explain the current lack of employment benefits but if the
training initiatives are further consolidated, this bodes well for the future.

Tourism-derived wine sales

The wine market of the Canary Islands is very localised, as one respondent indicated:
“90 per cent of the wines are sold locally”. Another operator commented:
Practically our harvest is sold on the island, in restaurants, supermarkets, with around
40 per cent of our wine being sold at the restaurant. We collaborate with local associations
that contact us to ask for wine.
Thus, there is a very close geographical connection between the wine product and its
consumers, first with the local community but potentially tourists, including mass
tourists visiting the islands who, with hospitality industry support for local products,
could be consuming local wine rather than cheaper imports.
However, one of the main current impediments for local wine producers, as
members of the community themselves, is that the tourism industry does not actively
support their wine product but, instead, chooses to import cheaper wine:
By and large tourists visit the islands on a package where all their consumption has been paid
in advance. Many of these tourists are not wine consumers and many who are usually
consume cheap wines and do not look at the quality of the wines. Therefore, our current
relationship with tourism is limited.
This comment suggests that in its current form, the mass tourism industry appears to
undermine rather than support the local wine industry. Indeed, this is not dissimilar
from findings in the Napa Valley where it was concluded that “mass tourism and wine
tourism are largely incompatible” due to conflicts in marketing and product delivery in
addition to the usual problems of overcrowding and traffic (Carlsen and Ali-Knight,
2004, in Poitras and Getz, 2006, p. 426).
 Changes at the provider level, such as hotels and restaurants incorporating local Wine tourism
produce into their businesses, could provide an opportunity for wineries to tap into as a development
potential economic benefits from existing tourism. In addition, there is considerable
potential for attracting a more discerning and higher yield tourism market segment. initiative
The development of high quality local produce with Canary Island DO, coupled with
great scenic assets, local heritage and art, provide the basis for quality rural-based
tourism products. 297
Furthermore, in the Canary Islands wine trails are increasingly playing an
important role in establishing a coordinated approach to generating direct wine sales to
tourists, and even resident foreigners, as one respondent commented:
[. . .] we have traditionally welcomed visitors here and now that we are certified wine route
members we have an extra reason to welcome visitors. Obviously, we believe that the tasting
room is an important vehicle to promote the winery’s sales [. . .] There is in fact an economic
reason for us to be related to tourism.
Wineries have recognised the great potential of direct cellar door wine sales to tourists,
as an operator whose winery has existed for over five generations stated: “Of all our
visitors, around 95 per cent are locals and 5 per cent are tourists, which is curious. The
opposite should be the ideal scenario. We are improving our facilities to host tourists”.
In fact, 19 of the participating wineries provide “formal” wine tastings in their cellar
door, and four more informal tastings (casual set up) for the occasional visitor.
Wineries are also being very proactive about stimulating the direct sales mechanism,
as another winery owner explained:
We are now refusing to sell our wines in large areas (supermarkets) to make people come and
buy wine from us, and we are achieving this. We are a winery where we don’t sell but people
buy from us.
The lack of support to buy “local” from the tourism hospitality sector is beginning to
provoke a backlash which is boosting cellar door wine tourism.
The fledgling establishment of wine tourism and cellar door experiences in the
Canary Islands provides new business opportunities, and in addition, it may contribute
to the community as a whole with a concerted effort to market the region.
The development of the wine tourism product would both benefit from and contribute to
a more holistic industry framework and regional marketing strategy, contributing to the
sustainability of the local economy in the long-term. One respondent whose winery both
planted and purchased grapes from local micro-growers explained:
We have to find a mechanism to make people understand that in a bottle of wine we are
selling landscape/scenery, viticulture, tradition, and history. This is hard to transmit to the
average citizen who has a tendency to only make comparisons in terms of wine prices.
We must go beyond that dimension; hence we have the responsibility to preserve the activity
of grape growing within the community because we buy our grapes from local producers.
If these growers do not have a place to bring their grapes, their production probably will
cease to exist.
In their study of local-global nexus of the Australian wine industry, Aylward and
Clements (2008) argue that long-term success in the international wine industry comes
from clearly differentiating the product in a saturated marketplace. Embedding of the
local wine culture in the bottle, potentially via a wine tourism experience, could create
JEC this important point of difference. It might therefore lead to wine sales not only at
3,3 the destination but also back in the tourism generating communities. This will not
occur, however, whilst the traditional tourism industry in the Canary Islands fails to
support local wine as a unique part of the visitor experience.

298
Institutional support for the wine industry
At present, wine growers are often required to pay levies that then support fundraising
and marketing. However, the distribution of the benefits (both direct economic and
marketing benefits) is not evenly distributed. Not surprisingly some wine producers
are opting not to support wine tourism events. As one grower explained:
We are fighting against the political establishment [. . .] the money that is moved by some
local administrators is sometimes important, though this does not reach us. This money does
not reach the local wine growers, but is shared among a lot of administration officials, who
say they represent wineries but ironically had never worked with grapes before. They live off
the wine sector without being involved in it [. . .] It is unacceptable that only 20 per cent of
such funds reach growers, while the other 80 per cent is being wasted among friends. We
therefore refuse to participate in acts we consider wasteful.
Despite the resistance and disappointment among some operators, four wineries often
donate wine in order to support more tourism-related initiatives. Furthermore, 12 of the
interviewed wineries regularly participate in community events and local festivals.
Participation is seen simply as a contribution of their business to the local community
and event: “We always collaborate with local festivities, particularly the Almonds
Festival, where we distribute almonds and wine for free”. However, as another
respondent explained, it may be a conscious marketing decision “so that people know
us more and purchase our wines”.
Overall, it seems that local initiatives are exclusive rather than inclusive, a situation
that is affecting local winery attitudes towards participating in wine tourism. Hall et al.
(2000a) highlight the importance of networks to the wine tourism industry, with
evidence of resource pooling and cooperation between competitors being key
indicators for their functionality (Hall et al., 1998). The challenge of wine production in
the Canary Islands landscape has encouraged cooperation and strong social networks
within the community as one winery owner explains:
When we harvest we schedule some specific dates, especially on weekends, and we help each
other [. . .] In order to become stronger, it is very important that we are united with as many
local wineries as possible.
Nevertheless, evidence from this study indicates that the function of more formal
structures for horizontal cooperation (between wineries), such as wine cooperatives or
regional councils could be improved. Further, mutually beneficial development of the
apparently weak or imbalanced vertical dimension (between the wine and tourism
industry) will be essential not only to the two industries, but also to providing extended
community benefits through wine tourism. The strengthening of representative
industry bodies which can directly engage with governments at all levels could
facilitate that process.
Enhanced social benefits and community development Wine tourism
In this study, there was little evidence of wine tourism directly contributing back to the as a development
community at this initial stage of development, which may reflect the lack of or
imbalance in the vertical integration of the tourism and wine industries. However, initiative
some winery operators were providing free advice or presentations to the wider
community as one interviewee indicated: “I sometimes go and speak about agriculture
in the local community”. In another example, a winery owner was approached by an 299
organisation supporting physically challenged people and offered to help by:
[. . .] hosting these individuals and having the oenologist teach them about wine tasting, wine
varieties, and I will also teach them about the history of Canary wine, about the sector, about
restructuring, etc.
Certainly, this last scenario implies that wineries clearly understand their potential role
in community development and the skills implied here. Developing experiences for
groups, including the physically challenged may have similarities to developing
tourism products, particularly niche wine tourism products for other groups of visitors,
including the sophisticated wine consumer. Moreover, the importance for operators to
provide unique experiences, as highlighted in previous studies (Keen, 2004) can help
towards tourism sustainability within a region. Comments from 14 winery operators
suggest that more and more wine tourists in the Canary Islands are looking for
personalised, in-depth, experiences unique to the archipelago.

Revitalised and reinforced wine culture

Promoting and protecting the more intangible aspects of the livelihood and well being
of the community is an important aim of tourism-driven community development.
In this study, several very positive factors that could lead to a fruitful alliance between
the Canary Islands’ wine industry and tourism development were identified. In
particular, the renaissance of the wine industry and the growing association with wine
tourism was fostering the maintenance of local heritage. The traditional use of the
landscape was perceived as having value, as it could reinforce local sense of place and
pride, while at the same time contribute to the local identity of the tourism industry.
Being unique is critical in an increasingly repetitive and highly competitive global
tourism industry.
Wine production on the islands of Tenerife and La Palma has a strong historical
connection. Statements such as “our winery is tradition in our family; my grandfather
was a wine producer”; “this winery has existed for 5 generations” or “the sweat and
work of our grandfather was such that we did not want to give this up” reflect the
sentiment and attachment of some of the current owners. Interviewees also expressed
their connection with the traditional landscape, and the role of wineries in contributing
to their preservation. This aspect also contributes to the lifestyle element of these rural
communities, which are particularly attractive because of their scenic landscapes: “We
have made many improvements to the property and this enriches the local landscape”.
Another operator commented that:
[. . .] much of the relationship of the winery and tourism is that the vineyard creates
a landscape or scenery. Having vineyards we are preserving areas that without vineyards
would be at the mercy of urbanisation pressures.
JEC Another participant expressed how the winery business was playing an active role in the
3,3 local economy and value creation through income generation and landscape conservation:
Apart from looking for a business benefit we are also interested in preserving the insular
viticulture-gastronomic patrimony, tradition and a wine with tradition, anthropology and
culture, advertise the local food, the scenery and incorporate the local population.

300 This comment is particularly important as the landscapes are changing, with
increasing pressure of urbanisation and development, as a winery manager stated:
[. . .] this industry competes with construction and although in some regions construction is
regulated because of the protection of the landscape [. . .] the children of old growers may
have their own professions or are not prepared to spend money on an investment that in the
end may not provide profits.
Some wineries are, however, struggling against the urbanisation and trying to preserve
their traditions:
The family winery has existed since 1600 [. . .] The family’s great-grand children inherited
what used to be traditional vineyards in the early 1990s. Instead of selling the land or
urbanising what they had inherited, they decided to stick to family tradition and exploit their
vineyards jointly.
Though the tradition is rich and the personal attachment strong, there are elements of
change with questions over the viability of the industry because of high production
costs and generational transition. Statements such as “Every day we have less skilled
labour, and farmers are becoming older” or “the majority [of grape growers] are
becoming old, over 60 years old, while the younger generations are ‘fleeing’ from
agriculture” reflect the challenges particularly the smaller growers are facing: “There
are many people abandoning their vines and I am going to do it too. It is just not worth
it with the high labour costs. It worked as we worked as a family but now I am getting
too old”.
In this scenario, could wine tourism provide the impetus for the long-term survival
of the culture of wine production in the Canary Islands? Certainly the strong local
culture would suggest that there is a potentially very interesting, culture-driven, wine
tourism product. This niche tourism product would also appear to click into the
established social networks that are already facilitating local benefits, ranging from
training and education to experiences for local physically challenged people. Could
employment in the service aspect of the winery encourage the local youth to stay
involved in wine production?
Ensuring that businesses can be transferred into willing and capable hands is
another reason that education and training initiatives should be supported by the
Canary Island’s wine industry. Although a different situation, the political scenario
in South Africa (Johnson et al., 2007) required a similar transfer of lands and
wine production from older, experienced, wine producers to younger, often unskilled,
labourers. The key to success was education and, in particular scholarships,
scholarships for young people to study at agricultural colleges, coupled with transfers
of parcels of land back to groups of people who demonstrated improving experience and
training (Johnson et al., 2007). A sense of ownership by a new generation may be what is
required to continue to revitalise the island’s wineries.
 However, it must be recognised that the mass tourism industry, growing demand for Wine tourism
housing and resulting continuous urbanisation exert massive pressure for relentless as a development
development of rural lands, making it more economically viable for wine property
owners to cease production and sell up. Likewise, locals might prefer to work in more initiative
stable sectors, including the local mass tourism industry rather than in the vineyards,
especially as wine production is still a difficult process. In fact, not even new machinery
and technologies have overcome the fundamental impediments of high production 301
costs. As Poitras and Getz (2006) state, the overall viability of the wine production
should be considered including the real potential of overcoming external forces.

Conclusion
In terms of tangible benefits, Canary Island wine tourism potentially could generate
employment with better education and training, as well as with potential land transfer
to enthusiastic young workers. Local profits to wine makers could be increased with
greater mass tourism industry support of local wine in traditional package tour
products plus through increasing development of the niche wine tourism product via
cellar door wine trails. Institutional support for wine could be improved by better
collaborative procedures and a greater transparency in the distribution of marketing
and other benefits. Social aspects of community development could become a greater
focus as there are currently few clear outcomes and this element could be linked to
reinforcing the wine culture by involving new generations of the community in wine
production and culture. Overall, if wine and wine tourism is to play a role in regional
economic development then, as some studies suggest (Hall et al., 2000a) there needs to
be a continued close relationship between the wine producers and their community to
maximise potential and minimise any negative impacts.
This said, there are many challenges facing the Canary Islands wine industry and
its interaction with the local community and tourism. These challenges, however, also
provide several opportunities for future research on the archipelago’s wine industry
and its relationship with the local community. One challenge, for instance, is the
natural competitiveness of business that interferes with the collaboration required for
most destination-based tourism initiatives to be successful; for example, wine trails
only work when there is cooperation. Another challenge is in the form of generation
changes that threaten both the wine business and tradition, as business succession is
unlikely to occur when the young are not interested in wine production or wine
tourism. Furthermore, the threat of mass tourism could lead to land value increases,
which in turn could outprice traditional rural products and therefore rule out any
potential for the wine tourism niche product upon which it depends. In this complex
scenario, it is clear that even closer relationships need to be established between wine
producers, the local community and the tourism industry to ensure that the wine
tourism product can contribute to strengthening the rural development and identity of
the Canary Islands.

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About the authors

Lynnaire Sheridan is a Lecturer in Tourism Management, Edith Cowan University, Western
Australia. Areas of research include pro-poor tourism via economic development, the design of
effective tourism impact indicators, cultural tourism and migration studies.
Abel Duarte Alonso is a Lecturer in Hospitality Management, Edith Cowan University,
Western Australia. Research interests include business-related areas of concern of small and
medium enterprises (SMEs), urban (e.g. hospitality) and rural (e.g. wineries), as well as wine
consumer and winery visitor behaviour. Abel Duarte Alonso is the corresponding author and can
be contacted at: [email protected]; [email protected]
Pascal Scherrer is a Sustainable Tourism Research Fellow with the Centre for Ecosystem
Management and the Sustainable Tourism Cooperative Research Centre at Edith Cowan
University in Perth, Western Australia. His research interests include the sustainability of
tourism activities in both urban and natural destinations. He is currently involved in a number of
projects examining visitors’ experiences, behaviours and impacts at tourist destinations.

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