Environmental Management in the Wine Industry: A Multiple Case Study

Introduction

There is now a certain scientific consensus that the way we produce and consume energy is causing global climate change, which in turn is having serious impacts on both land and socioeconomic systems (Tziperman, 2022). The impact of this climate change is enormous, with predictions of lack of drinking water, major changes in conditions for food production and an increase in mortality rates due to floods, storms, droughts and heat waves. In short, climate change is not only an environmental phenomenon but a factor with profound economic and social consequences (Herndon & Whiteside, 2019).

Climate and its variability affect many areas, but the agricultural sector, in general, and the wine sector, in particular, are more vulnerable to climate change (Venios et al., 2020). Wine needs certain environmental conditions, so it is not difficult to deduce that an increase in temperature or a decrease in rainfall can have consequences for vineyards. Wine is an alcoholic beverage that is the product of total or partial fermentation of fresh grapes or their must. Complex biological and biochemical interactions take place between grapes and different microorganisms, mainly yeasts and lactic acid bacteria (Fleet, 2003). Cooler than normal temperatures result in incomplete ripening with high acid content, low sugar content and immature flavors; while warmer than normal temperatures create overripe fruit with low acid content and high sugar and alcohol content (Holland & Smit, 2010). The ability of the vine to adapt to these changes will depend on many factors, some intrinsic, such as the grape variety, and others extrinsic, such as the preventive measures applied during the growing process, as well as the production methods used for winemaking (Scrimgeour et al., 2015).

Although it may seem that vine cultivation is an environmentally harmless process, the reality is quite different. Hence, the wine industry must make changes in its processes, both in terms of cultivation and winemaking, to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and thus contribute to improving the environment. Faced with the serious threat of climate change, wine producers and winery managers must in the short term consider a wide range of climate change adaptation and mitigation measures to preserve the quality, identity and profitability of wines (Merloni et al., 2018). Therefore, wine-producing countries must promote the environmental management of their wineries to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change. In this sense, Spain one of the main players, being the third largest producer of wine worldwide with 3,930 million liters produced in 2016, representing 14.70% of the wine produced in the world, only behind France and Italy with 4,556 and 5092 million liters respectively. The average global wine consumption, calculated between 2010 and 2016, stands at 3.4 liters per person per year (Anderson et al., 2017).

The industrialization of the agri-food system following the green revolution of the mid-20th century has led to increased productivity and made the agri-food industry one of the most energy- and resource-demanding. As a result, it is one of the activities that contributes most to global environmental problems (Zanin et al., 2019). In this context, consumers have become increasingly aware in recent years of the environmental impacts of food production. Thus, society has been pressuring government agencies to implement various measures to reduce the harmful effects of human activity on the environment.