I have loved leading such a talented team of dedicated and passionate professionals who are deeply committed to advancing Australian wine through trusted, world-class science and practical industry solutions.
Dr Mark Krstic will step down as managing director of the Australian Wine Research Institute at the end of 2026, the AWRI announced in September, ending seven years in the role and 15 years of service to the institute.
Krstic became managing director in December 2019 and led the organization through what the board called a period of considerable challenge and change, keeping its focus on practical, industry-relevant science. His tenure's milestones include the launch of Affinity Labs, the AWRI's fee-for-service commercial testing laboratory, and the establishment of a Cooperative Research Centre project focused on no- and low-alcohol wine production.
He also secured the institute's core strategic partnership with Wine Australia and the University of Adelaide, oversaw the 2022 and 2025 Australian Wine Industry Technical Conferences, and strengthened ties with international scientific and commercial wine testing laboratories. A smoke taint specialist, he was central to the AWRI's emergency response through the bushfire events of 2013, 2019 and 2020. His contribution was recognized in 2020, when he was named ASVO Viticulturist of the Year.
"I have loved leading such a talented team of dedicated and passionate professionals who are deeply committed to advancing Australian wine through trusted, world-class science and practical industry solutions," Krstic said.
The AWRI board acknowledged his significant contribution to the organization, its people and the wider industry, and will now begin the search for his successor.
The timing puts Australia's two peak wine bodies in simultaneous transition: Australian Grape & Wine CEO Lee McLean departed at the end of September, and both boards now face the succession question at once. Writing in WBM Online, Pridham Viticulture's Ben Pridham argued the industry should look to its own leadership pipeline, noting that Krstic himself graduated from the Wine Industry Future Leaders program in 2010 before the AWRI board ran a global search to appoint him in 2019.