Dr Mark Krstic has been appointed the new Managing Director of the Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI), from 1 February 2020.
“Dr Krstic was the stand-out candidate due to his wealth of experience in grape and wine research, knowledge of the wine industry and outstanding leadership and commercial business skills,” said Louisa Rose, Chair of the AWRI Board, who announced the new appointment. “Dr Krstic combines a research background in viticulture and oenology with deep understanding of the issues facing Australian grape and wine producers.”
AWRI, founded in 1955, exists to serve the Australian grape and wine industry with high quality scientific research. While its primary focus is the Australian wine industry, it is one of the world’s leading research institutes, whose research is highly valued by the international wine community.
“The opportunity to lead the AWRI is both humbling and exciting,” said Dr Krstic. “At a time when our industry is facing incredible opportunities and challenges, the importance of world-class grape and wine science and a strong technical support base to help Australian grape and wine producers succeed cannot be overstated.”
Dr Krstic hails originally from Tasmania, where he studied Agricultural Science at the University of Tasmania in Hobart. He has had an illustrious career, working for major Australian scientific organisations, both as a researcher and as an executive. He is a graduate of the Wine Industry Future Leaders Program and held a number of key roles across the wine industry.
He succeeds Dr Dan Johnson, who will be the new Pro Vice Chancellor Innovation at Macquarie University in Sydney.
Via press release
