Now farming grapes organically – or, at the very least, paying lip service to "sustainable farming practices" while secretly nuking your vineyards with Roundup – is de rigueur for anyone who wants to be taken seriously in the premium wine space. But is it enough?
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There has been a subtle shift in what consumers want from their glass of wine – and what they're willing to pay (often more) for. The days of "just" farming organically sans chemicals simply doesn't cut it anymore.
Organic viticulture has been on the rise for some time (the share of the world's vineyard acreage that is organic went from 1.39 percent in 2005 to 7.85 percent in 2021 – a 464.75 percent increase – according to World of Organic Agriculture 2023, and sales or organic wine have increased, from 29 million cases in 2012, to 71m in 2022, an increase of 1.2 percent to 3.3. percent of the global wine share, according to the drinks market analysis firm International Wine & Spirit Research.
This growth has outpaced general wine sales, which have fallen from 2.4 billion to 2.06b cases, a decrease of 14.17 percent.
But doing what many consider to be the right thing to the grapes may not continue to translate to a healthy bottom line, if brands aren't extending their vision for sustainability to the people farming and selling those grapes.
Behind the shift
Unlike the dawn of widespread organic viticulture, when there were (sometimes valid) doubts about the quality of the wine being produced, it would be difficult even for the most determined wingnut, to argue that treating employees well and compensating them fairly for their efforts could do anything to diminish the quality of the wine being made.
On the contrary, the desire to support brands who are socially responsible appears to be refreshingly nonpartisan.
The majority – about 71 percent – of Americans have said that it is important to support socially responsible brands, according to an annual study about conscious consumerism from the consultancy Good.Must.Grow, which also noted that the latest findings show that support for social equity is at an all-time high since the survey began in 2013.
That study noted that 42 percent of Americans plan to allocate more of their spending to socially responsible companies this year.
Another study conducted by OnePoll reported on the flipside, with 74 percent of respondents saying they would boycott brands that went against their personal values. Even more – about 85 percent – report being willing to spend more money on higher quality products that reflect their values.
While organic and biodynamic certifications focus primarily on farming, other third-party verified organizations like B Corp, Fairtrade, Fair for Life and the newly minted Regenerative Organic Alliance are focused on looking at a company's holistic approach to sustainability, which includes their approach to farming and their treatment of their employees and the broader community.
Being socially responsible cannot, seemingly by definition, be accomplished with one-size fits all approach, and brands in different regions of the world are offering programs that meet challenges that may be unique to their region.
Training for underserved groups
Lamberto Frescobaldi is president at Marchesi Frescobaldi, one of the most iconic wineries in the world, having winemaking roots in Tuscany that date back more than 700 years. From the get-go, sales haven't been an issue, with artists like Donatella and Brunelleschi and members of the royal Court of England serving as unofficial ambassadors to the brand,
But when he was approached by a director of the Gorgona Penal Colony with a request to help her develop a winemaking program on the island, Frescobaldi says he saw an opportunity to not only make wine from what he saw as auspicious terroir, but actually give back to a country that gave him and his family so much.
"I realized that the program they were envisioning would put prisoners in touch with nature, and help them develop skills that could help them rebuild their lives," Frescobaldi says. "Most prisoners leave and go back to the villages they were born in because that's where their families are from."
But after serving long sentences for serious crimes, he adds, it is difficult for them to find work, especially without specialized skills. Of the more than 200 wineries the Gorgona Penal Colony approached, Frescobaldi was the only one to respond to the invitation.
And from the debut of the first vintage in 2013, Frescobaldi has embraced what has been dubbed the Gorgona Social Project. Currently, 62 inmates are permitted to move about the maximum-security Gorgona Penal Colony freely to work in the vineyards and cellar. The inmates who are selected for the program are serving the last three to six years of their sentence, and they have been pre-screened for disciplinary, drug and psychiatric issues.
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"We have a wine team there who help them develop skills that will facilitate their reintegration into the workforce," Frescobaldi says. "I also personally see their time in nature in a vineyard overlooking the sea as rehabilitative and important."
The inmates receive a training in viticulture, and a salary. At the end of their sentence, they have the opportunity to work at Frescobaldi estates with the same salary and opportunities as other equally skilled wine pros.
Two wines are crafted from the program, Gorgona Rosso and Gorgona Bianco, and the 9000 bottle releases sell out every year.
Health, community support
Some winemakers are coming to the conclusion that their wineries can only be as successful as their surrounding communities.
Says Elena Carretero, corporate affairs and sustainability director of Santa Rita Estates in Chile's Maipo Valley.
"Our company was founded 140 years ago, but what we've seeing in the countryside in recent years is very sad," Carretero notes. "People are moving to the cities because they don't see opportunity here."
The infrastructure – especially the schools and medical centers – were also lacking.
"About 20 years ago we started working with our local schools because we realized they had poor resources, and we saw it as a way to increase the value of the education that children were getting," Carretero says, explaining that the winery saw that as a boon for the region now, and in the future. "We also realized that the community was losing its pride in wine-growing and the natural heritage there, so we created a program aligned with the classroom's history, social sciences and language curriculum that delves into the country's rich viticultural heritage and the importance of protecting local biodiversity."
In addition to classroom visits, students tour the winery and learn about the process of making wine, and the native flora and fauna in the region (the estate has 2839 acres set aside for biodiversity conservation), which has been declared one of the 35 biodiversity hot spots on the planet, she adds.
The winery funds other local arts and scholarship programs (around 300 undergraduate and graduate students per year benefit), but the most arguably impactful contribution Vina Santa Rita has made is the medical center it opened in Alto Jahuel, Buin.
"It started as a maternity ward and grew," Carretero says. "Now we treat all of our employees and their families, and the surrounding community at no cost. The medical center is completely modern and we see about 4000 patients every year."
Seven doctors with different specialties are available to treat a variety of maladies.
At Viñedos Orgánicos Veramonte and Viña Neyen de Apalta in the Casablanca and Apalta valleys, head winemaker Gonzalo Bertelsen explains that imaginative regenerative gardening and an in-house medical care is helping redefine their sustainability program.
About one-third of Casablanca's population lives in rural area with limited access to land and water for crops, or medical care.
In 2018, Viñedos Orgánicos Veramonte set out to improve the soils of the vineyards while also giving employees access to fresh, organic produce that they can sell.
"When vines need to be removed and soils need to rest, we help them to replenish their nutrients by planting different crops," Bertelsen says. "We created a Collaborative Garden with the municipality of Casablanca's help. Each 900 square-meter parcel can be used to cultivate fruits, vegetables and flowers, and each one includes water for irrigation, which is scarce in the valley."
The 10 families who participate can then sell the crops and receive an income.
"The program also gives them access to organic food, workshops and training in organic agriculture," he explains.
In 2021, when they received their Fair for Life certification, which encourages initiatives that benefit vulnerable employees, Bertelsen says they evaluated projects that they felt would reflect their commitment.
"We created a care room where a nurse comes weekly to perform medical check-ups and basic procedures for field workers who are elderly and have underlying health conditions," he says. "We are evaluating this initiative in the Apalta vineyard now because we think it's the best way to get these workers with economic and transportation challenges the help they need."
Bertelsen says they will also consider expanding the program to help "everyone within our organization who may need it."
Investing in employees
Other wineries are investing in their current and future employees. The type of investment is tailored to the social and economic forces at play in the region the winery is rooted in.
In South Africa, from the 1960s through to the overthrow of apartheid in 1994, racial segregation and discrimination was institutionalized, and the effect resonated through every industry, including wine. (Before apartheid, the country had a history of slavery and widespread discrimination). Non-white South Africans were not allowed to own land or run wine businesses, and abusive working conditions were rampant. Even wine consumption was limited to whites.
Wineries today have struggled to rectify the future, even if they can't fix the past.
At Bosman Family Vineyards in the Western Cape of South Africa, the team made the historic decision in 2009 to give their 260 full-time employees a 26 percent stake in the business, and therefore a significant stake in the future of Bosman and the wine industry of the Cape. The Bosman Adama Trust was established, and to date, is the largest land reform transaction in the history of the South African wine industry.
"A key motivation was to address economic equality in our rural community by enabling a more sustainable future for the next generation," says Petrus Bosman, managing director. "The idea was to grow the pie together."
The goal is to have a sustainable winery and the Adama Trust, while building equity and a sustainable and responsible future. So far, so good.
Since establishing the trust, Bosman has "increased sales ten-fold and the business has been able to pay a dividend to beneficiaries in all but two years," Bosman notes. "Together we also have been able to vertically integrate the business. Our Plant Improvement Facility, which provides us with clean plant material, together with our vine nursery and wine cellar, offer meaningful and specialized middle management job opportunities."
The challenges at Domaine Carneros in Napa are starkly different of course. CEO Remi Cohen has made it part of her leadership mission to ensure an environment of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) reigns at Domaine Carneros, because having a diverse workforce is the right thing, but also the smart thing to do.
Indeed, numerous studies have demonstrated that a diverse workforce leads to healthier bottom lines.
In 2021, Domaine Carneros began a formal DEI committee and training program. The winery's 150 employees (75 percent full-time) receive DEI training, with a specialized program for managers.
The DEI committee meets three-four times per year, with representatives from all eight of the brand's departments, including viticulture, cellar and sales.
Domaine Carneros' DEI program was created to not just perpetuate an inclusive and collaborative environment, but also to encourage idea-sharing, voice concerns and support employees who hope to further their careers with language skills, educational grants or through in-house mentorship programs.
"At any given time, there are a handful of employees taking advantage of our educational and certification reimbursement program," Cohen says.
The types of programs vary, depending on the employees' roles. Language classes of any kind are open to all, while winemaking team members tend to take advantage of technical classes and human resources employees work toward certificate programs.
"We also have people enrolled in the internal mentorship program, which is tailored to their current role and areas of interest," she says. "Many of the participants have been promoted, and in a few cases, we've created new positions because we realized their skill sets and interests match a developing business need."
Increasing sales in a crowded marketplace with considerable economic (flat-lining sales, increased prices for materials and transportation) cultural (cannabis, the low-to-no-alcohol movement, the World Health Organization's anti-alcohol crusade) challenges is a complex undertaking. Brands set on growth in sales to the younger generation especially will need to consider social equity if they want to stay in the game – and don't forget to tell people about it!
"Wine lovers are gravitating more and more towards brands that have values that align with their personal values," Cohen says. "Values of sustainability, diversity and equity and community philanthropy are increasingly important for companies to share with consumers as they develop their environmental, social and governance policies."
