Wine and C02 emissions
There is a growing concern among wine consumers and in the wine industry about the environmental impact of this rapidly expanding, global business. Various elements of the production process are being reviewed and debated including packaging, choice of bottle closures, the use of chemicals and most importantly transportation. An estimated 35% of CO2 emissions from wine production stems from transporting wines across the globe.
The UK is one of the world’s largest wine importers. Figures provided by WRAP (the Waste & Resource Action Plan, a not for profit company created in 2000 as part of the Government’s waste strategy) indicate that the UK consumes about 1 billion bottles per year. Most of this wine travels thousands of miles, from as far away as Australia, New Zealand and South America.
But what if the wine only had to travel 10 miles to its destination? By far the most effective way of reducing CO2 emissions from wine transport is to buy more English wine. If each London wine consumer replaced just one imported bottle a year with a bottle of English wine, the impact would be significant.
Additionally we hope to challenge conventional views about wine packaging by offering wines in a range of packs from returnable, light weighted glass bottles to 100% recyclable packs.
Forty Hall Vineyard is a member of the United Kingdom Vineyard Association’s Sustainability Working Group which is working to develop a sustainability standard for the UK wine industry. We welcome input and ideas from anyone interested in sharing good practice and in developing innovative solutions to carbon reduction and sustainability.