Wine bottle weight indirectly affects the environment

Fertilization and Wine Fermentation of Grapevines

Kerman taught well-known experts in wine courses at the University of New York and the University of Chicago and changed his name to Dr. Vino on his blog. The website focuses on research on the wine politics and economy of the United States and France. With the help of ClimateCheck expert Pablo Päster, Kerman measured the carbon footprint of the wine produced during production and transportation. The results were disclosed at the American Wine Economist Association Working Conference last October.

Kerman said that grapes from the branch began to produce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, the gas's primary source is that the farmers applied fertilizer to the plants. Globally, fertilizer is one of the most important factors in the production of greenhouse gases, but the impact in the wine industry is not great, because the growth of grapes is not as high as other crops (such as corn). In addition, chemical fertilizers and insecticides also pollute the environment, and some wine traders are considering switching to organic farming methods. Similarly, large amounts of carbon dioxide are also produced during the fermentation of grapes. However, it turns out that wine produces the most greenhouse gases in transit.

Transportation tools

Wine production areas are limited, such as Bordeaux, France, and Napa Valley, California, which are shipped to the rest of the world. Kerman said: "Over 95% of the US wines are produced on the West Coast, but more than two-thirds of the population live in the east of the Mississippi River and have to transport large quantities of wine through transport."

Most West Coast wines are transported by truck to the East Coast, which generates a large "carbon footprint". Kerrmann compared the different transports and found that air transport caused the greatest environmental pollution, followed by trucks. Containers produced by sea had the least carbon footprint, five times less than trucks and eleven times lower than airplanes.

The difference in emissions indicates that distance is not a major factor in how much carbon dioxide is emitted. The key is transportation. If you live in San Francisco, you can drink a lot of wine from California vineyards. If you live in New York, buying wine from Bordeaux using a concentrating box will be more environmentally friendly than buying Napa Valley wine.

In addition, the weight of the package can affect the transportation efficiency. Heavier glass bottles consume more fuel and emit more exhaust gas. Therefore, wine merchants gradually use lightweight glass bottles or other materials.

Kerman said: "We can see that wine packaging has been diversified. There are only one reason, namely, light weight, such as box-in-box, Tetra Pak, carton, and even plastic and aluminum bottles."

Although the carbon footprint produced by wine production is insignificant compared to other crops and industries (such as power generation), it still needs to consider the impact it has on the planet.

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