Wine Innovation Centre
- Capital Investment - Kent & Medway, Growing Places Fund, Less than £2m
Approval Status
Fully Approved
Delivery Status
GPF Project Delivered
Expected Repayment Date
Spring 2026
T
he project will deliver a Wine Innovation Centre at the East Malling Estate. The project complements NIAB EMR’s investment in the only UK research vineyard to support Kent’s wine sector to develop as global leaders in innovation.
Whilst viticulture is the fastest growing agriculture sector in the UK, the industry is not yet profitable due to adverse climate conditions and the lack of suitable bespoke agronomy approaches which have a direct impact on crop yields. The Wine Innovation Centre will build on the success of Kent’s wine industry and will generate upwards of £1m (over 5 years) in additional annual research and development spend in the region.
Accelerating investment at the site is a priority to ensure that NIAB EMR and its partners remain at the cutting edge of research and innovation.
Capital Programme delivery update
Take a look at our update on the delivery of the Local Growth Fund (LGF) and Growing Places Fund (GPF) capital programmes.
Growing Places Fund
The Growing Places Fund (GPF) was established by the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (formerly the Department for Communities and Local Government) and the Department for Transport (DfT) in 2011. The aim of this funding is to unlock economic growth, create jobs and ‘kick-start’ house building at stalled development sites.