Ventures Dialogue

A grant to Ontario based Pillitteri Estates Winery, to study study the viability of icewine in China is now raising eyebrows here at home.

In 2006, Pillitteri received a $108,263 grant from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).  Pillitteri, one of the largest producers of icewine in Canada, collaborated with Xingiang winery in Xinjiang and The Great Wall Winery in Beijing as part of its project.  From this, Pillitteri is soon to sell its icewine under the Xingiang Winery label.  Currently, Pillitteri’s icewine sales in China are around $1 million a year via six agents in the country. 

What has put the winery in the headlines lately, is that CIDA is currently undergoing an audit (and with it, some criticism as well) to determine if CIDA’s funding is going towards the right activities.  For example, one question raised is if its funding should be used in China at all.  Funds are intended to be used to help the poorest countries, and yet China is a quickly emerging powerhouse.   Another question is that are investments in alcohol and lingerie what CIDA should be funding?  Pillitteri, as well as a Montreal underwear and lingerie manufacturer that received $103,000, were two companies singled out in a recent article.    

Charles Pillitteri told the Canadian Press his project is successful and worthwhile as he is not only meeting, but exceeding the goals he set out to do.  His winery spent four times as much as his grant amount, and is set to go beyond his goal of creating 30 jobs in China. He also said he guided his Chinese partners on the hiring of women and other human rights issues.  In addition to this, Pillitteri is instructing his partners on how to make the icewine themselves. 

Since its creation in 1978, CIDA has given over $1 billion to Canadian companies for nearly 4,000 projects.  To date, 972 have been successful.  CIDA remarks that more than $10 billion were invested in “recipient” partner countries, and this in turn has increased the Canadian sales by $6 million.  CIDA’s 2006-2007 report is slated to be released in six weeks, and the auditors are still at work, but there remains questions in the minds of many.  So for now, judgment is left to the court of public opinion.

Photo by by dagmar61