The New York Wine & Grape Foundation (NYWGF) was created in 1985, in part, to help establish a funding channel for research in the areas of viticulture, enology, and “best practices” in wine marketing and business development.

For 35 years, NYWGF has annually distributed funds to projects that provide the New York State wine and grape industry with short-term solutions and long-term strategic directions. Click here to explore previously funded projects.

The Research Committee of the Board of Directors now welcomes new proposals for 2022. Proposals will be due by January 24th, 2022.

The priority research themes for this year are as follows:

VITICULTURE:

• Mechanization and precision agriculture:  Identify opportunities for vineyard management mechanization and application of precision agriculture technology with a particular emphasis on development of labor saving and affordable canopy management equipment.

• Floor and weed management:  Develop and evaluate vineyard floor and weed management strategies to reduce energy and herbicide use.

• Sustainability:  Develop and evaluate vineyard management strategies to efficiently utilize nutrient inputs and promote long term soil health and water quality.

• Disease & Pest management, including Invasive species:  Develop effective, efficient and sustainable disease and pest management materials and techniques that minimize development of resistance and provide resilience to climate change. Develop management approaches to combat impact of invasive species, including but not limited to spotted-wing drosophila and spotted lanternfly.

ENOLOGY:

• Wine quality:  Develop and evaluate techniques and materials to improve quality of wine made from cold hardy hybrid and native grape varieties.

• Grape varieties and clones:  Develop and evaluate new grape varieties and/or clones of current varieties that are suitable for making quality wine in New York’s diverse wine growing regions and that are resilient to climate change.

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT:

• Customer acceptance:  Identify and test education and communication strategies to promote customer acceptance of wines made from cold hardy hybrid and native grape varieties.

• Customer awareness:  Identify and test education and communication strategies to increase customer awareness of the diversity and quality of New York wines.

In addition to the narrative requirements outlined in the Research RFP, please note that, if private sector funding is being sought or received to support the proposed project, a letter identifying the funder and statement of their support must be submitted with this proposal. Please use this Commitment Letter Template and submit with your NYWGF proposal as outlined in the Proposal Template.

A detailed budget should also be provided. Please complete the Research Budget Template and submit with your NYWGF proposal.