News & Events
Given the rapidly changing conditions, the Sustainable Winegrowing BC Certification launch, originally scheduled for April 1, will be put on hold until the fall of 2020. However, on April 1st, SWBC will be offering their new self-assessment tool in the ‘free resources’ section of their web-site, sustainablewinegrowingbc.ca.
Up on a hill between the Muscat vines at Lastella winery, three head-high rows of woodchips are baking away in the sun. Vineyard manager Jody Subotin probes the end of a pile with a two foot long temperature gauge, checking on the compost pile’s progress. At the end of one row, a large pile of grape skins and stems is steaming. The enormous compost pile is the winery’s natural fertilizer experiment for 10 of their 70 acres of vines.
After years of learning and planning, this summer the team at Sustainable Winegrowing BC (SWBC) updated their on-line self-assessment to sustainability standards for vineyard and winery certification. The outcomes based standards are available on the SWBC web-site for review and comment until the end of the year. The SWBC directors were excited to see how the new guidelines would play out in real wine businesses, and principals from Tightrope, Red Rooster, Quails’ Gate and Le Vieux Pin volunteered to be pilot participants for the anticipated sustainability certification program.
This summer the BC Wine Grape Council hosted the busy Enology & Viticulture Conference and Trade Show. Sustainability was the hot topic, and the wine world weighed in with insights and innovations over two solid days of learning and networking.
SWBC’s new certification program will help grapegrowers and winemakers enhance soil health and wine quality, and meet increasing market and customer demand for wines made with verified conscientious, sustainable practices. Read about BC’s new sustainable certification program.
Sustainable Winegrowing BC has recently completed an update to the SWBC Assessment (now called SWBC Standards) and we'd like your feedback. Please click the orange bar above to go to the Standards feedback form.
In anticipation of the launch of the Sustainable Winegrowing BC Certification Program four members participated in the Pilot Program, July 10-13.