Written by Leonid Fadeev

Like any other industry, the wine industry has positive and also negative effect of its activities on the social behavior, environment, people’s health and other aspects of our lives. Thus, the wine industry is to show its responsibility due to the negative side of its activity. Responsibility is the state of having a duty to deal with something. In the wine industry, it is responsibility of a company or individual for the impacts of its decisions and activities on society and environment, through transparent and ethical behavior that contributes to sustainable development, including health and the welfare of society. The general term “wine industry” includes the whole supply chain related to the wine production and marketing, from a vineyard to the shelf in a wine store. This essay will consider how responsible the wine industry is for its activities and dwell on social, environmental and ethical issues.

As there is always a negative impact of the wine industry on the planet, the responsibility for environment seems to be one of the most important. People more and more concern about our environment as well as the wine industry members and leaders. Key figures in the wine communication, including Jancis Robinson MW, are campaigning against heavy glass bottles due to the concern of increasing carbon footprint. In February 2021, Jancis Robinson MW declared that she and her team would weigh wine bottles during tastings, record the weight of particularly heavy or light bottles and then criticize or praise producers for their choice. Robinson stated that it does not matter whether the wine is good or not, heavy bottles have to go. This idea is also supported in scientific circles, for example by Dr. Richard Smart. In 2019, Smart published an article on JancisRobinson.com about how wine producers and consumers can help reduce wine’s carbon footprint. The key issue for him was the use of lightweight glass bottles due to production and transportation. Some particular wineries also care about this. Maison Gabriel Meffre in the Rhone Valley is one of the biggest wineries in the region. They proud of the fact that they were the first to develop a label-free wine bottle using relief engraving that weighs 400 g (the average weight is 500 g+). This has allowed it to save 2 010 tons of glass since 2009 when the project began. Australian winery the Hidden Sea, founded in 2021 by a football star Richie Vandenberg who turned to be a winemaker, has achieved a major sustainability milestone by removing the equivalent of more than 10 million single-use plastic bottles from the Indian ocean. From every bottle they sell, they remove and recycle 10 plastic bottles from the Indian ocean.

Social responsibility of the wine industry is another topical issue. In order to clarify the meaning of social responsibility the ISO 26000 Guidance on social responsibility has been developed. Domaine de la Jasse in Montpellier France produces around a million bottles a year. Domaine was the first of its kind in France to implement the ISO 26000 Guidance on social responsibility in 2015. It helped them to really see what their challenges were and to reflect it on everything they did. In the US there is also a movement towards better treatment of employees. One of the points in the Lodi Rules programme for sustainability is that it requires that workers are paid a competitive wage. In California, market forces are forcing growers to pay more because they are competing with marijuana growers for workers. This has also led to an increase in benefits. The Napa Valley Farmworker Foundation pays for education and professional development programs ranging from English training to safety in the vineyard programs. As part of the programme, Napa growers contribute to fund better housing for farmworkers that include meals, lodging, recreational opportunities and a laundry.

During its operation the wine industry uses chemicals which have a harmful impact on peoples’ health. According to the California Department of Pesticides Regulation, in 2010 25 million pounds of pesticides were applied to conventionally-grown wine grapes in California. The Pesticide Action Network classifies about a million pounds of those chemicals dispersed on wine grapes as “bad actors” meaning that they are known or probable causes of cancer, are neurotoxins, or groundwater contaminants. France sprays over 60 000 tons of pesticides per year. A group of world-known wineries are taking steps to reduce the level of chemicals used in the vineyards. For instance, the Swiss biologist Katia Gindro has extracted and identified sixty molecules from Vitis vinifera grapevines. Some of them are particularly effective at killing vine diseases. Gindro is currently working on turning these molecules into treatments that eliminate the need for fungicides. This research is funded in part by many of the first growth chateaux of Bordeaux such as Chateaux Lafite Rothschild, Latour, Margaux, Haut-Brion, Mouton Rothschild, Ausone, Cheval Blanc, d'Yquem and Petrus.

In order to respond to the trend of low alcohol consumption and moderate drinking the wine industry is moving away from high in alcohol and cheaply fortified wines. Drink in moderation or drink responsibly slogans can be seen in many sport and social events. As the wine industry has moved toward premiumization, wine has become less of the choice for alcoholics looking for the alcoholic beverage at the cheapest price. Take the following wineries as an example. Forrest (the Doctors’ Pinot Noir, Marlborough 2019) and the Brancott Estate (Flight Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough 2019) have low alcohol (9% abv) wines in their range now.

Judging by many examples from all over the world it can be stated that generally speaking the wine industry is responsible. Its responsibility is spread onto different ways and it is increasing. It is mainly environmental, social and ethical. Industry leaders, wineries and other players are taking steps to decrease environmental damage, to make the industry more attractive and comfortable to work in, to decrease the harmful effect on people’s health by using chemicals or excessive alcohol consumption. The more developed the wine industry becomes, the more responsible it is.

LEONID FADEEV, Stage 2 MW Student, WSET / IWSC “The Future 50” winner, Weinakademiker, DipWSET, WorldSom Magister Sommelier, founder of Vine and Wine Consulting