Driving industry change

OPINION: New Zealand wine holds a very special place on the world stage; with close to 90% of sales destined for export markets. Not only are we world famous for our distinctive wines, but we are also highly regarded for our sustainable winegrowing credentials.

The New Zealand wine industry has the goal to be a carbon-neutral industry by 2050. To help us reach that target, we have partnered with the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) to develop a Road Map to Carbon Zero for the New Zealand Wine industry.

Since 1995, New Zealand Winegrowers has led Sustainable Winegrowing NZ (SWNZ), widely recognised as a world-leading sustainability programme. The programme ensures the industry meets best practice guidelines for sustainability, that are independently audited. In New Zealand, 96% of our grape growers, and more than 90% of wineries are SWNZ-certified.

Among other environmental reporting, SWNZ also measures and reports on a large range of emissions associated with the production stage of wine.

The data collected through SWNZ covers about 80% of the emissions associated with the production of a bottle of wine. At a national level, our industry is unique amongst key wine producing countries in being able to make that claim.

This information is returned to members through individualised benchmarking reports – another world first. The recently released National Greenhouse Gas Emissions Report 2022 estimates greenhouse gas emissions resulting from wine production to the winery door was 131,768 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent for the 2022 vintage, equivalent to 258g CO₂ e/bottle of wine. Key elements of these emissions include:

■ Winery packaging equals 44% of total emissions; ■ Vineyards equal 41% of these emissions.

We know these numbers aren’t the full story because SWNZ does not account for emissions associated with wine distribution or the sunk emissions in vineyard and winery infrastructure, but it’s an important start.

It’s clear that we have a long way to go and further guidance is required to help us on our emission reduction journey.

The Road Map to Carbon Zero, due to be released in mid-2024, will help the New Zealand wine industry to make informed decisions. It will also support our international reputation by demonstrating our commitment to zero carbon emissions.

If you are interested in sustainability, climate change or want to be involved in the Road Map to Carbon Zero please get in touch.

Dr Edwin Massey says more guidance is required to help on our emission reduction journey