International wine industry greenhouse gas emission calculation protocol and tool

Abstract

The wine industry, like other producers, has been aware of the likelihood of increasing demand from legislators and consumers to quantify and reduce its carbon footprint. This led to development of the Greenhouse Gas Accounting Protocol for the International Wine Industry and a calculator for individual businesses to assess their contributions to greenhouse gas emissions.

Summary

The starting point was to recognise the lack of standard international methods for making calculations and to agree on definitions, what to include in the protocol and how a calculator should be constructed to take account of various industry inputs and outputs.

Development of the protocol was a joint effort of the Winemakers’ Federation of Australia (through the Grape and Wine R&D Corporation), the Wine Institute of California, New Zealand Winegrowers and Integrated Production of Wine South Africa. At the same time input was sought for formulation of the calculator and concepts were trialled by several wine companies. In 2008 the protocol and calculator were formally endorsed by the International Federation of Wine and Spirits and presented to the International Organisation of Vine and Wine.

The outcome to date is achievement of the first step towards a global wine standard that will be served by an on-line calculation tool and an independent certification scheme. Data gaps remain in certain areas like the sequestration potential of vineyards, emissions from fertilisers and other vineyard inputs, and values for types of wine and packaging. Although there will be a lack of rigorous data until these gaps are filled , the tool in its present form can at least show areas of greatest contribution to greenhouse gases and indicate changes from one season to the next.