MAKING A REAL DIFFERENCE: IMPLEMENTATION OFSUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION SYSTEMS ON A NATIONAL BASIS

Philip J Manson Sally van der Zijpp

New Zealand Winegrowers Sustainable Winegrowing New ZealandPO Box 902756 PO Box 845Victoria Street West Blenheim 7240Auckland, 1142 New ZealandNew Zealandpmanson@nzwine.com

SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION - THE ORIGINS

The New Zealand wine industry has a strong commitment to sustainable production in bothvineyards and wineries, and sustainability forms a significant part of New Zealand’s message inthe market at both industry-wide and individual business levels. New Zealand is a truly newworld country, being amongst the last in the world to be discovered, it has a relatively smallpopulation and a predominantly unpolluted environment. As a country New Zealand has a highlevel of commitment to sustainable production, as is evidenced by the fact that the greatestproportion of our electricity is produced from renewable resources.In the early 1990’s wine industry leaders recognised that the natural resources of the country, andthe industry, were of significant value and needed to be protected and where possible enhanced.The industry was undergoing rapid vineyard expansion and this growth was projected tocontinue for some time. Along with this expansion there was new pressure on land and waterresources, accompanied with issues related to changing use of land. In many cases not only wasthe use of land for viticulture new, but the land managers were also new to the production of grapes and wine. It was felt that developing guidelines for sustainable viticulture would helpestablish and retain good practice, and would also provide a valuable education tool by whichresults from industry research could be transferred to producers.The growth of the industry was primarily driven by significant increases in exports particularlyto the United Kingdom, which was showing a developing interest in purchase of goods with wellestablished environmental credentials. Industry leaders felt that taking a proactive approachtowards sustainable production would meet this growing demand and assist individualcompanies to enhance their marketing opportunities.In the mid -1990’s after considerable testing the industry launched a holistic vineyardprogramme, which has since become known as Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand(SWNZ). In 2002, a new module was launched to provide guidance on sustainable management

of wineries. Following wide industry consultation, in 2007 New Zealand Winegrowers (theindustry body) announced a bold Sustainability Policy aimed at having all New Zealand winesbeing produced under independently audited environmental programmes by 2012. The Policywas intended in part to promote participation in SWNZ, but also recognised other environmental-based programmes including ISO 14001, certified organic and biodynamic production. Tosupport voluntary adoption of this Policy, New Zealand Winegrowers has made compliance aprerequisite for participation in events they organise.Since the Policy was announced there has been significant increase in participation in bothSWNZ and organic programmes albeit starting from a smaller base. It is estimated that currently91% of the producing vineyard area is participating in SWNZ, and a further 3% is producingunder certified organic programmes. Although it was developed more recently, the SWNZwinery programme has been adopted relatively quickly and 85% of the winery productivecapacity is included in the programme.

TECHNICALLY ROBUST - EASILY APPLIED

The widespread voluntary adoption of SWNZ and its practices has been the result a combinationof important factors. Clearly, the strong support of the national industry body has been importantproviding leadership, administration and financial support. Being an industry-derivedprogramme SWNZ has endeavoured to maintain a balance between having a strong technicalfocus and having practical commercial application.The New Zealand industry funds a comprehensive research programme, much of which hasdirect application to sustainable production; they also collaborate in a range of Governmentfunded initiatives. This research feeds directly into the ongoing development of SWNZ andensures that the programme has a sound technical base, and is able to quickly adopt newpractices as they are developed through the research programme. The focus of SWNZ is todevelop practical tools and processes to interpret research results thus facilitating application byproducers.All SWNZ members (vineyard and winery) complete and file an annual Scorecard, or self audit,and provide various other production information e.g. spray diaries and pest monitoring records,to the programme administrators. This Scorecard has changed considerably over time andperforms the dual function of providing guidance to producers while recording their sustainablepractices. The database of industry practices now held by SWNZ allows the industry to monitorindustry trends and provides valuable information back to members and continues to inform theongoing research programme.

The vineyard and winery Scorecards cover a comprehensive range of topics (Table 1) and arepresented to the members in an electronic format with drop down menus. The member ispresented with a range of alternate practices (with guidance notes) and they are encouraged torecord all of their relevant practices. Where the member records practices that do not meetbaseline sustainable criteria, they must also record intended corrective actions; these areautomatically added into the SWNZ database for future audit purposes.

Vineyard Scorecard Winery Scorecard

Resource management Resource managementSoils and nutrient management Water managementGround cover management Process AidsFrost protection Spills and emergency proceduresWater management By-product (waste) managementPlant protection PackagingSpills and emergency procedures Energy resourcesBy-product (waste) management RefrigerationEnergy resources SubcontractorsSubcontractorsConservation (biodiversity)

Table 1. Scope of the Vineyard and Winery Scorecards for Sustainable Winegrowing NewZealand.

The Scorecards are very flexible and allow for the introduction of “information only” fields forcollection of base data that can inform ongoing development of the programme. The informationcan provide insight on issues that do not fall in to required sustainable production criteria.At present, the Scorecards record basic energy use data, including fossil fuel use and electricity,but they do not generate a carbon footprint for either the enterprise or the product. It isanticipated that in the future SWNZ may include tools for these calculations to be undertaken.During its development the primary focus of SWNZ has been on vineyard (including nursery)and winery production. As the programme moves forward it is anticipated that there will be agreater inclusion of activities further along the value chain, for example including aspects of distribution that are under the control of the member.New Zealand has comprehensive legislation on the issues of labour including health and safety,seasonal labour and workers rights. SWNZ has integrated the core elements of these often quitecomplex requirements into the programme.