Mr Green, of Carrick Winery at Bannockburn, was commenting on a benchmarking survey for the wine industry, released yesterday by the winegrowers association and Deloitte.
New Zealand Winegrowers chief executive Philip Gregan said it had been a turbulent year which had an impact on every sector of the industry, from grape growers and wineries to the businesses servicing the industries.
"Certainly, many of our members are feeling the pinch right now as trading conditions are the toughest in the past two decades," Mr Gregan said.
The survey confirmed that profitability had declined since 2007.
Mr Green said people were buying less expensive wines as a consequence of the economic downturn and that had an impact on Central Otago wine sales.
"I think it's a sign of the times. People are being more careful and looking to buy less expensive wines. That's had an effect on the premium wine market generally and on Central Otago wines, which attract a premium."
Mr Green thought it could be 18 months before grape growers could expect an upturn. "It'll be a slow recovery with more difficult times for the next 12 to 18 months."
He had not heard of any wineries in dire financial straits in the region and said people in the industry were "hanging on in there" until things improved.
Central Otago made up only 2.5% of the New Zealand wine market, so the effects of the downturn were probably less on the region than on other parts of the country.
Grape growers were looking closely at their costs and doing what they could to reduce debt. The growth of the industry in Central Otago had reached a plateau, Mr Green said.
"In terms of development, I think it'll be four or five years before we see any more major new developments in Central Otago."
The volume of grapes harvested in the region was down for the past two years and that was good, he said.
"It's no good making lots of wine if we can't sell it."
There was an increasing trend for wineries to sell grapes to bigger operations rather than making wine themselves.
"That's probably a prudent business decision".
Wine exports had held up reasonably well and Australia continued to be a strong market for New Zealand wines.
However, the exchange rate had affected the value of exports to the United States and the United Kingdom.
More growers were producing "second string" wines which would sell more cheaply than premium brands but there were few "bargains" around, he said.
"There might be a bigger range of prices for Central Otago wines than there used to be. They used to be concentrated around the $35 mark but now they probably range from $25 through to $50-$60."
Winegrowers would be further hit by the Government increasing excise on wine by 4c a bottle, which took effect from July 1. Most would absorb the cost rather than passing it on to consumers, Mr Green said.
