In a small red barn just outside of New Ross, in rural Nova Scotia, business partners Dominic Rivard and Germain Bergeron are crafting cider, fruit wine and liquor with handpicked apples and grapes from the nearby Annapolis Valley. The pair bought the estate in 2010 and began producing and shipping their products the following year. They supply the local market, sell across Canada and to the United States, and are exporting the remaining 30-to-35 per cent of their production almost entirely to Asia Pacific markets.
After spending many years in Asia, making wine in China and owning a winery in Bangkok, the two business partners chose Nova Scotia to start their winery. With the lower cost of buying land, the quantity and quality of fruits, and with an ideal climate and soil condition to craft their products, they found a perfect fit in New Ross. Nova Scotia’s reputation for quality wine products and the proximity to the Port of Halifax were major advantages for the wine makers, who had always factored Asia into their business plan. Those plans have paid off, with the winemakers still growing their export markets throughout the Asia Pacific.
About The Asia Factor in Atlantic Canada:
The objective of The Asia Factor in Atlantic Canada project is to assist the region in better responding to Asia’s rising global economic importance by providing critical information on the opportunities and challenges for Atlantic Canadian business and trade with Asia.
This project represents the Atlantic side of The Asia Factor, a nationwide, multi-year project launched in 2014 by APF Canada that examines the interaction of each province and territory with Asia. The Asia Factor provides comprehensive resources, information, and analysis on provincial-level Canada-Asia relations.
The Asia Factor in Atlantic Canada project deliverables include:
• an interactive website that shows how Asia's impact on Canada differs for each province and territory
• an infographic booklet on Atlantic Canada's relations with Asia according to key indicators (image files available upon request)
• blog posts
• a business consultation report
• success stories for Island Abbey Foods and Muwin Estate
• Atlantic Canada-Asia-focused market analyses for clean technology, value-added foods, and ocean technology
• a project summary report
All deliverables are available in both official languages.
