Check here some of the most commonly used sustainable wine certifications that can help you become a conscious wine buyer.
Wine bottle certifications are a useful indicator for those who want good quality sustainable wines. There are labels that indicate wines with organic or biodynamic certification, and there are also sustainable wine seals.
These certified labels inform the customer of the conscious and ecological efforts of the winery or vineyard. But sometimes, it’s not entirely clear what these certifications really mean or what story they tell.
So, to help you better understand sustainability in wine, here’s a guide to some of the most commonly used sustainable wine certifications and what they mean.
California Certification for Sustainable Wine growing (CCSW)
Introduced in 2010, the Certified California Sustainable Winegrowing (CCSW) is issued by the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance (CSWA). It was created to promote the benefits of sustainable winegrowing practices.
The certification is based on a concept of sustainability that encompasses winegrowing practices that are – environmentally sensitive, responsive to the needs and interests of society at large, and economically viable to implement and maintain. The CSWA measures vineyard and winery performance based on several parameters, such as – water use, energy use, greenhouse gas emissions, nitrogen use, and compliance with crop protection material restrictions. Vineyards and wineries must meet an overall scoring threshold to obtain and maintain CCSW certification.
Along with the certificate, CSWA also provides a Code of Sustainable Winegrowing Practices workbook as a tool for grape growers and growers to evaluate their practices and learn how to improve their overall sustainability.
SIP Certification
Introduced in 2008, Sustainability In Practice (SIP) is a certificate issued to a wine, vineyard or winery that applies sustainable viticulture practices. It drives strict, non-negotiable requirements, committed to standards based on science and expert input, independent verification, transparency and absence of conflicts of interest.
To obtain SIP certification, a vineyard or winery must meet criteria in the areas of – Habitat, Water Management, Energy Efficiency, Soil, Recycling Process, Air Quality, Packaging, Safe Pest Management, Social Responsibility and Business Management. A winery or vineyard must meet more than 50 requirements and 75% of the total possible sustainability points to obtain SIP Certification.
SIP Certified wines show a farmer’s and winemaker’s dedication to responsible practices from soil to bottle, preserving natural and human resources. Currently, there are more than 42,000 acres of vineyards in California and Michigan, five wineries and more than 49 million bottles of wine that have received SIP certification.
LODI RULES
This certification created in 2005 by California winegrowers and accredited by world-renowned scientists, LODI RULES is America’s sustainable viticulture program. The grape growers wanted to farm more responsibly to ensure that agriculture could continue for future generations, so they established the LODI RULES sustainable certification program.
Certification is based on the LODI RULES standards, which are the backbone of the program and include six focus areas: business management, human resource management, ecosystem management, soil management, water management, and pest management. Wineries can use the LODI Standards seal on a label if they have met the 85% composition requirement.
More and more wineries are recognizing the benefits of producing wines from LODI Standards-certified grapes. Sourcing certified grapes and displaying the CERTIFIED GREEN seal on wine labels can help brands stay ahead in today’s competitive marketplace. The seal emphasizes environmentally and socially responsible practices while considering economic viability for long-term business success.
Currently, there are more than 1,200 LODI RULES-certified vineyards throughout California, Washington, and Israel. Two new seals have been created for wineries outside of Lodi to use on their wine bottles. All three seals, LODI RULES, CALIFORNIA RULES, and the CERTIFIED GREEN seal, have the same rigorous meaning of verified, scientifically sound sustainable agriculture.
ISO
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is a global organization that works to provide standardization for a range of products and companies. The ISO 14001 / ISO 14004 standards provide guidance on establishing, implementing, maintaining and improving an Environmental Management System (EMS).
The main objective of ISO is to identify and reduce environmental waste, which includes ensuring that wine producers have policies and procedures in place to properly manage wastewater so as not to pollute the local environment.
ISO changes over time (e.g., ISO 14001, ISO 14004) and continually updates and revises sustainability guidelines and compliances. Several wine regions, such as Bordeaux in France, Chile and Australia, use the ISO standard. ISO 14001 / ISO 14004 is a leading standard used by wineries around the world and is considered crucial to the growth of the sustainable wine business.
LIVE Certificate of Sustainable Wine:
Low Input Viticulture and Enology (LIVE) is a non-profit organization that certifies Pacific Northwest winemakers for their sustainable wines, vineyards, and farming practices. LIVE’s research-based sustainable viticulture standards are internationally accredited. These sustainability standards are based on a checklist of practices that are established each year.
The checklist includes numerous opportunities to improve sustainability, and to receive LIVE certification wineries and vineyards must maintain and review: vineyard planning and planting, biodiversity, irrigation standards, energy use, fertilizer use, greenhouse gas emissions, water and waste management, and labor conditions at production facilities.
Vineyards and wineries must also meet Salmon-Safe criteria, which focus on water management and preservation of salmon and other aquatic life. LIVE also provides regional education to preserve the wine industry’s human and natural resources.
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