1. Why is using pesticides in wine production so bad?

Most believe that wine is sustainable. However, 85% of wines are produced unsustainably. [b] Among the most chemically treated crops globally are grapes used for wine. For example, France’s wine grape farmland consisted of just 3.7%, but used 20% of all pesticides nationally [b]. As a result, all the toxic agricultural chemicals harm people, animals, and the planet. Compared to conventional fields, the probability of spraying pesticides for organic fields was 30% less.

These pesticides, including herbicides, fungicides, and insecticides, can cause:

• Biodiversity loss [b];

2. Why can’t I really find this information?

Big Agriculture (Ag), the global agrochemical industry, spends 2X as much as Big Oil on lobbying to fund powerful disinformation campaigns that significantly downplay the environmental and health risks of chemical farming [b]. Therefore, people are less likely to question such farm techniques and their negative effects on health and the environment. 

3. Why “green” wine?

Wine made without synthetic chemicals: they use the healthiest farming methods for health and the environment. Different farming styles include certified organic, biodynamic, regenerative, permaculture, sustainable, or natural farming techniques [b]. With every glass you sip, you will support healthier ecosystems, communities, and farming practices [b]. You’ll also support winemakers championing long-term soil health, clean water, and responsible agriculture [b].

As a result, we can reverse climate change and improve health by doing the following:

• Supporting vineyards that store carbon in the soil;

• Offsetting the emissions of 13 cars by supporting 20 acres of regenerative vines [b];

• Avoiding pesticide residues [b].

4. Does green wine help biodiversity?

Yes, green wine producers reverse climate change effects and past environmental damage! While conventional vineyards emit carbon and degrade soil, green wine producers powerfully do the following:

• Stop tilling, a practice that releases tons of carbon (below pic) [b];

• Plant cover crops, a practice that drastically improves soil health and captures tremendous carbon from the atmosphere [b].

Stopping tilling can significantly increase soil organic carbon infiltration and nutrient retention, while decreasing erosion potential. According to a 12-year study, adding cover crops increased soil organic carbon stock gains for

• no-till by 30%,

• chisel plowed by 10%, and

• moldboard-plowed plots by 18%.

Based on 56 mainly peer-reviewed papers, compared to conventional systems, “organic systems had 32% to 84% greater microbial biomass carbon, microbial biomass nitrogen, total phospholipid fatty-acids, and dehydrogenase, urease, and protease activities.”