Handle chemicals safely.

This course will provide you with the knowledge and skills required to manage risks associated with chemical use, and to understand your obligations in the areas of duty of care, quality assurance and environmental management.

Overview

Campus: Margaret River
When: All year round
Study Mode: On Campus

Participants will learn on a practical level how to improve their integrated pest management programmes, to better choose the right chemical for the job and to apply it more accurately.  The course is designed for people who will be spraying chemicals without supervision.

On successful completion of this course, students will receive a statement of attainment for the following nationally accredited units:

Learn more.

Learn how to safely operate a chainsaw.

This course covers the process of maintaining, preparing and operating hand-held chainsaws in a work environment.

Overview

Campus: Margaret River
When: All year round
Study Mode: On Campus

These skills can be transferred to the homestead, are useful for home gardners and could lead to employment in parks and gardens or landscaping.

You will gain skills and knowledge in understanding the correct type of chainsaw for a particular task, how to use the chainsaw, maintain the chainsaw and store suitable personal protective equipment.

You will also carry out routine checks and maintenance on a chainsaw, apply appropriate chainsaw techniques, cutting methods according to manufacturer’s specifications and documented low risk work procedures; assess and minimise environmental impacts of chainsaw use; maintain records of chainsaw training and certification, risk assessment and use.

On successful completion of this course, students will receive a statement of attainment for the following nationally accredited unit AHCMOM213 Operate and Maintain Chainsaws

Learn more.

Tuesday 11 November, 12.15pm – 1.15pm 

Bite Size Lunch ‘n’ Learns are faced-paced!

November Presenter and Topic: John Stanley – Creating Value through Customer Experience.

Main Topics Covered:

What is the formula for success for small businesses?

We live in an era where small businesses must develop new ways of doing business or get out of business. In this presentation, John will explore:

• Price makers versus price takers using local examples.

• Why social media is not the answer.

• How do you create a unique customer experience that adds value?

• Why your story is critical to your success.

Learn Connect Engage.  Lunch is on us – registrations essential!

About the Presenter: John Stanley, along with his wife Linda, owns the award-winning Chestnut Brae near Nannup, which they’ve transformed into a globally recognized agritourism destination. He also leads John Stanley Associates, is a Nuffield Scholar, and works as a speaker and consultant in 35 countries, advising small to medium-sized businesses on retailing and marketing. An author of several industry books, including Just About Everything a Retail Manager Needs to Know. John is President of the West Australia Agritourism Association and is recognised by the International Speakers Association as one of the world’s top 10% speakers.

Target Industries: Agri-tourism, tourism operators, hospitality, retail, wineries and accommodation.

Note: Limited spots available! Maximum of 2 bookings per business.

A light lunch is provided. Numbers are strictly limited and registrations are required for catering purposes.

Register here.

Session 2: Partnerships for ESG success

Wednesday 19 November 2025 4:30 PM – 5:30 PM AEDT

REGISTER

Guest speakers:

In this second webinar it’s all about partnerships and how to support your success in sustainability:

Session 3: S = Social Responsibility

Wednesday 10 December 2025 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM AEDT

REGISTER

Guest speakers:

Our third webinar addresses the social elements of sustainability:

Session 4: G = Governance

Wednesday 21 January 2026 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM AEDT

REGISTER

Our fourth webinar addresses sustainability governance:

Tuesday 11 November, 8am – 9am AWST

Been wondering how to best engage with the on and off trade in 2025?

In this webinar we will discuss with a panel of experts the best ways to communicate and connect with buyers, sommeliers, and the modern wine drinker in Australia.

In conversation with wine marketing communications specialist Emily Sharland, the incredible panel line-up will feature:

Robert Aitken – Fine Wine Category Manager East – Endeavour Group

Xavier Vigier – Head Sommelier – Circl Wine Bar

Shonelle Hurley – Head of Independent Sales, Retail & On Premise – Penfolds

This webinar is FREE to WCA Members.

 

Thursday 6 November, 9am to 5.30pm – Sydney

Build strong direct-to-consumer strategies within Australia

The DTC Wine Summit aims to deliver marketing insights, share successful DTC strategies and provide a platform for wine brands to understand the growth opportunities in the market. Attendees will learn about successful DTC strategies in both Australia and globally.

Learn more and book now and save 25% off your ticket price!

DFES Online-Bushfire-Fundamentals-Course

Bushfire Fundamentals has been developed to support those who undertake duties in supporting Incident Management Teams at bushfires. It is targeted at personnel working at incidents such as utility companies, St John WA, contractors, WA Police and Department of Defence. The course provides an overview of bushfire characteristics and behavior, bushfire safety and survival, the Australasian Inter-Service Incident Management System (AIIMS) and the role of WA fire agencies in bushfire response.

DFES Online-Rural-Fire-Awareness-Training

Rural Fire Awareness is targeted at farmer response brigades and seasonal workers to provide students with a basic awareness of fireground safety, suppression strategies and maintaining their safety when operating on a fireground.

Join us for an afternoon covering the latest on Grapevine Scale, fungal diseases and their resistance status in Margaret River and the latest in biologicals including examining their use for weevils.

Date: Tuesday 24 November 2025
Time: 1.00pm -3.30pm
Location: South Regional TAFE, Room W10, 272 Bussell Hwy, Margaret River
Cost: Free for members of the Margaret River Wine Association, $25 for non-members.

David Logan is an applied entomologist at the University of Adelaide and he will give us a run down on the lifecycle of scale and the latest findings on scale insects of the grapevine which he has been researching as part of a Wine Australia project.

Dr Ismail Ismail has a Bachelor of Plant Protection, a master in Plant Pathology and a PhD in Plant Pathology from the University of Adelaide. He has 20 years of experience in plant pathology at various organisations and is currently chief investigator on fungicide resistance research based at SARDI.
Lincoln Harper, Curtin University, Lincoln Harper is a research officer working on characterising fungicide resistance in grapevine fungal pathogens, with a focus on Botrytis cinerea (grey mould) in wine grapes. His research has also involved genetic work in grape powdery mildew (Erysiphe necator) and grape downy mildew (Plasmopara viticola). This research aims to provide valuable information that could contribute to improving resistance management strategies in an economically important crop.
Scott Paton works as a research agronomist for Nutrien Ag Solutions but has held research positions for several agrochemical companies over a career spanning nearly three decades. Scott undertakes high level field research to further industry understanding of disease and insect behaviour and he has a particular fascination with biological fungicides and the potential value they offer growers for enhancement of integrated disease management strategies.

Register here. 

AWAC 63: Monday 17 – Thursday 20 November
AWAC 64: Monday 24 – Thursday 27 November

Founded in 1992, the Advanced Wine Assessment Course (AWAC) is an intensive four-day course designed for participants with considerable formal wine tasting experience. It aims to prepare potential new wine show judges and develop the sensory analysis capabilities and the vocabulary of Australian wine industry personnel at an elite level.

The AWAC is presented under a four-day format, which includes approximately 40 hours of activities over four days. Twelve leading wine show judges, journalists and winemakers assist in the presentation of the course.

The aims of the course include:

Learn more an register interest here.

Find WA Wines to the World past presentation’s and information sessions recordings here.

The adoption of organic and sustainable viticultural and winemaking practices is increasing around the world in response to climate change and economic, health and other social concerns of land managers and wine consumers. Organic and sustainable production systems have many similarities, with both aiming to protect and enhance the natural environment and ecological diversity. The two systems have different approaches to achieving those aims. In this webinar, Liz Pitcher will address some of the more common questions about these two production systems.

View webinar here.

A healthy soil is vital to ensure both high yields and future high yields, as well as environmental protection – there are no negative consequences on the ecosystem from having a healthy soil! But what IS a healthy soil?

Soil health can be defined as a soil’s ability to function and sustain plants, animals and humans as part of the ecosystem. This definition speaks to the importance of managing soils so they are sustainable for future generations. To do this, we need to remember that soil contains living organisms that, when provided the basic necessities of life – food, shelter, and water, – perform functions required to produce food and fibre.

This workshop aims to give participants an introduction to management practices and tools that work to repair and regenerate our soil ecosystems and build resilience from the ground up.

Session 1: Management practices to improve soil health & microbial diversity
Richard Leask, South Australian Viticulturalist & 2019 Nuffield Scholar

View live recording here.
Download PDF of presentation here.

Session 2: The soil health tool kit
Emeritus Professor Lynn Abbott
Download presentation here.

Find out more about the program and speakers here.

This event has been made possible through a collaboration between Lower Blackwood Catchment Land Conservation District Committee and the Margaret River Wine Association and is supported by Leaskagri, Wine Australia, Soil Dynamics and Grow Safe.

South Regional TAFE Margaret River campus offers a range of short courses including forklift operation, barista, first aid and evaluate wines.

Find courses here.

If you wish to discuss any skills / training requirements for your business please contact diana.fisher@srtafe.wa.edu.au

Further information on what skills / training is already available may be found at this here

Monday 1 December, 1.45pm – 6pm

The Australian wine business sector is being re-set.  A high volume of winery and vineyard assets are for sale, many driven by financial stress, but others by succession challenges or retirements.  On the other hand, some great wine businesses are taking the opportunity to expand and enhance their own business by acquiring quality assets at the bottom of the market.  So, there are a lot of industry players looking to either buy or sell at present.  The grape re-set is occurring.If you want to be a player in this process, this seminar is for you.  If you are a seller, this might be the most serious transaction of your career, being the culmination of your life’s work.  You need to understand how to maximise value and to avoid the pitfalls that could cost you dearly.

Find out more here and book.

Interactive Insights – book now for specialised training

Wine Australia has recently launched its new Interactive Insights portal and we’re offering tailored training on how to access targeted information for your state or region.

If you’re yet to do so, we’d encourage you to register for training here.

Eligible wine businesses can create a listing on the Australian Tourism Data Warehouse (ATDW) at no cost to increase their online exposure. To take advantage of this opportunity, wineries can view the online training videos and see the new wine-related features, developed with funding from the Australian Government’s $50 million Export and Regional Wine Support Package.

Employers of vintage and pruning workers are invited to join Rural Enterprises, the Harvest Trail Services (HTS) Provider for the South West, to an online Information Session on:

Find Zoom recording here, the link also includes the PowerPoint Presentation and the Harvest Trail Services brochure.

Alcohol Beverages Advertising Code Online Training

This course includes a series of short videos, interspersed with questions, designed to educate and consolidate an alcohol marketer’s understanding of the ABAC system and the high standards for marketing and packaging alcohol in Australia.

Allow about 1 1/4 hours to complete the course.

Complete training here.

The conference will hear from grape and wine producers and leading researchers who will present the latest findings on bushfire preparedness, smoke effects and recovery from fire to ensure that grapegrowers, winemakers and businesses are better prepared, better informed and better equipped to handle the decisions that need to be made before, during and after bushfires.

Listen here.

Kickstart and exciting career in the wine industry.

On completion of this course you will gain insights in the procedural and technical tasks in bottling and packaging, cellar operations and laboratory testing, customer service tasks in cellar door, tasks related to wine grape growing and harvesting and post-harvesting.

Overview

Campus: Margaret River
When: Semester 1, 2025 | Semester 2, 2025
Study Mode: Full-Time

This qualification describes the skills and knowledge required for operational workers in the wine industry. These workers carry out skilled tasks under broad direction in a range of sectors. Some of these sectors include procedural and technical tasks in bottling and packaging, cellar operations and laboratory testing, customer service tasks in cellar door, tasks related to wine grape growing and harvesting and post-harvesting.

Learn more. 

The Chardonnay clone Gingin was imported into Western Australia in 1957 and has become one of Australia’s oldest recognised Chardonnay clones. While its phenotypic similarity to other Chardonnay clones has been noted, its exact origins remained a mystery. The AWRI has established a robust methodology for Chardonnay clonal identification that harnesses the detailed information provided by whole-genome DNA sequencing. This genomic technology was applied to unravel the history of this important grapevine clone by sequencing samples of Gingin and other clones suspected to be related to Gingin, including Mendoza and OF Chard. The findings shed light on the origins of these Chardonnay clones, while demonstrating the utility of the clonal genetic identification technology.

Watch recording.

Monday 20 October, 9am – 4pm

Join DPIRD and AIFST for a half day interactive workshop, where Nerida Kelton and Ralph Moyle from AIP will discuss all things sustainable packaging for food and beverage businesses.

The Unboxing Sustainable Packaging workshop will take participants through regulations, trends and guidelines for packing their product.

Participants will be able to walk away from the workshop with a better understanding of:

Don’t miss the opportunity to attend this informative workshop and be prepared for the changes ahead to minimise disruptions.

After the workshop, participants will be able to register for consultations. AIP will offer 15-minute in-person consultations with businesses after the workshop at the venue.
Sessions may be one-on-one or in small groups, depending on the topic. You can request a consultation when booking your ticket— you must provide details on the subject matter you would like to discuss. A time will be allocated closer to the workshop.

Please note: consultations are limited and not guaranteed.
We encourage you to use this opportunity to connect with AIP.

Learn more.

Tourism Australia, Ultimate Winery Experiences and Wine Australia jointly present domestic marketing insights for wine and tourism businesses. Tourism Australia’s Robin Mack will discuss the renewed focus, strategy and support in the domestic market. Robin will also be sharing valuable consumer insights from their Consumer Demand Project and detail the tourism distribution ‘journey’.

Watch recording

Sustainable Winegrowing Australia is Australia’s national program for grapegrowers and winemakers to demonstrate and continuously improve their sustainability in the vineyard and winery through the environmental, social and economic aspects of their businesses. This webinar will provide an overview of the program including membership requirements, certification and use of the new Sustainable Winegrowing Australia trust mark.

Watch webinar recording

Pre-Recorded – register to receive link

Growers with uncontracted fruit may wish to consider resting their vineyard – that is, maintaining the vineyard asset under reduced management inputs and costs, until market conditions improve. This webinar looks at one of the resting options available to grapegrowers – the use of foliar applications of the plant growth regulator Ethephon.

Register here.

Join Wine Australia CEO Andreas Clark who will introduce the newly released Wine Australia Strategic Plan 2020–25. This Plan provides a pathway to support profitable, resilient and sustainable winegrape and wine businesses and addresses key issues including growing value, export, wine tourism, innovation, climate change, sustainability and biosecurity. In addition, Andreas will introduce the Annual Operational Plan outlining Wine Australia’s plans for the next 12 months. Also hear from Stu Barclay – Wine Australia’s GM Marketing, Dr Liz Waters – Wine Australia’s GM Research, Development and Adoption and Rachel Triggs – Wine Australia’s General Counsel and GM – Market Access in this webinar which is not to be missed!

Watch recording

9 July 12.30 pm – 1.30 pm

Australia’s climate is variable, and it is changing. Grapegrowers and winemakers in Australia are already adjusting practices in their vineyards and wineries to keep pace. However, to date, many of these changes have been reactive; driven by the changes that are experienced season-to-season.

The new, world-leading resource Australia’s Wine Future: A Climate Atlas will help improve our climate adaptation response, as it provides a range of detailed insights about how the climate is projected to change within each of Australia’s wine regions until 2100.

Presented by Dr Rebecca Harris and Dr Tom Remenyi of the Climate Futures team at the University of Tasmania, this webinar will explore The Climate Atlas and what it shows for Australian wine regions in the Regional Program clusters.

The Climate Atlas combines a series of climate change models to clearly show projected trends in temperature, rainfall, aridity and in their distribution patterns in regions of Australia where grapes are grown.

It will help to explore the regionally specific climate challenges that we will need to manage and includes an indication of which regions around the country are similar now to through to the predicted conditions in 2100, allowing growers and wineries to look to their peers and viticultural experts around the country on how to adapt for the future.

Click here to watch a special report on Landline about The Climate Atlas or here to download the Climate Atlas.

Watch webinar recording here

Expand your knowledge in the wine industry. 

This qualification will provide you with the practical skills and knowledge to meet the needs of managers in the viticulture industry.

Overview

Campus: Margaret River
When: Semester 2, 2025 | Semester 1, 2025
Study Mode: Full-Time | Part-Time

Learn more.