In central Italy winegrowing and winemaking are a major activity in agriculture. Winemakers’ cooperatives are well-established channeling about 82% of the region’s grape production. In this context, two cooperatives were selected, similar in size and location. We applied the Carbon Footprint Methodology to a product of the wineries chosen for the quantification of related greenhouse gas emissions. The guidelines –being drawn up by the OIV since 2011 – were used as a methodological basis and the International Wine Carbon Calculator (FIVS, 2008) was used as a technical tool. The chosen functional unit is 100 liters of Montepulciano DOC red wine. The agricultural phase was analyzed in its entirety. The system boundary was from cradle to the company’s gate, thus excluding all the downstream phases. The comparison shows that the differences in quantities of kilograms of CO2-eq emitted per functional unit are small. In terms of absolute emission, the major contribution in kg CO2-eq. comes from the combustion of diesel fuel for the operation of farm machinery and from production and utilization of fertilizer
A comparison of carbon footprints in wine production: the case of two cooperative wineries in central Italy
PATTARA, CLAUDIO;CICHELLI, Angelo;
2012-01-01
Abstract
In central Italy winegrowing and winemaking are a major activity in agriculture. Winemakers’ cooperatives are well-established channeling about 82% of the region’s grape production. In this context, two cooperatives were selected, similar in size and location. We applied the Carbon Footprint Methodology to a product of the wineries chosen for the quantification of related greenhouse gas emissions. The guidelines –being drawn up by the OIV since 2011 – were used as a methodological basis and the International Wine Carbon Calculator (FIVS, 2008) was used as a technical tool. The chosen functional unit is 100 liters of Montepulciano DOC red wine. The agricultural phase was analyzed in its entirety. The system boundary was from cradle to the company’s gate, thus excluding all the downstream phases. The comparison shows that the differences in quantities of kilograms of CO2-eq emitted per functional unit are small. In terms of absolute emission, the major contribution in kg CO2-eq. comes from the combustion of diesel fuel for the operation of farm machinery and from production and utilization of fertilizerI documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
