ROME, July 17 (Xinhua) -- Italy was among the first major wine-producing countries to champion the value of organic wines. Now, some Italian winemakers are taking it a step further, promoting a new standard: "sustainable" winemaking.
Organic wines in Italy follow a series of rules that prohibit the use of chemical pesticides and herbicides in the grape-growing period or the use of genetically modified yeasts during fermentation. The use of sulfites and other additives is also limited.
The new standard, set by a ministerial decree passed earlier this month, adds new requirements that protect the environment, ranging from minimizing the use of gasoline-powered tractors to incentivizing the use of recycled glass and paper, even for packaging and promotional materials. The overall goal is to produce less waste at every step of the production and distribution process.
Winemakers who meet the standard as judged by a soon-to-be-formed independent and accredited entity will be allowed to use a special seal on their labels.
The decree was jointly worked out by the Italian Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture with input from winemakers and environmental groups.
"Many economic sectors are looking for ways to make their production more sustainable," Paolo Castelletti, general secretary of the Union of Italian Wines, one of the main organizations that pushed for the new standard, told Xinhua. "Consumers are increasingly concerned about environmental impacts and we think the wines that take these steps will be sought out by consumers."
According to the union, Italy is the first country in Europe to launch such an initiative. Castelletti said the sustainable winemaking standard will get underway with the 2021 vintage. Beyond Europe, New Zealand's winemakers have been on the vanguard of this kind of production process, Castelletti added.
Massimo Gianolli, a wine producer in the northern Italian region of Veneto, agreed. He said that the seal will be seen as a guarantee of quality wine made by contentious winemakers.
"Consumers will learn to look for this kind of guarantee over time," Gianolli told Xinhua, adding that Italian wines are the first mover in this area and other countries are sure to follow.
According to Gianolli, in the first year, winemakers representing between 3 and 5 percent of the country's total wine production will participate in the initiative. But that figure could jump to 10 to 15 percent for the second year and higher after that.
"There is no reason why Italian wines can't be looked at as the 'sustainably produced' wines of Europe," he said. Enditem
