Grove Mill and Sanctuary Wines Obtain CarboNZero Certification as Among the World's First Carbon Neutral Wines

29/09/06 The New Zealand Wine Company (NZWC), producer of Marlborough's award-winning Grove Mill and Sanctuary wines, has taken its environmental performance to a new level with CarboNZero certification. They have released the world's first CarboNZero wines, which are also amongst the world's first carbon neutral consumer products.

The NZWC challenged itself to address its impact on climate change, from carbon dioxide emissions, as a result of the growing, winemaking and shipping (food miles) of its wines.

CarboNZero certification involves three important steps: measuring, managing toward reduced emissions and finally offsetting (mitigating) the remaining unavoidable emissions through the regeneration of native forests. The process was developed by Landcare Research New Zealand and is independently audited to ensure its integrity.

Rob White, CEO of The NZWC, says the company is extremely proud to have achieved such a significant environmental milestone:

"We have a proud history of environmental awareness, including habitat rehabilitation, and becoming CarboNZero now places us at the cutting edge of global sustainability. Most Grove Mill and Sanctuary wines are enjoyed outside of New Zealand and by offsetting our emissions from production and international shipping they become the natural choice for people concerned about food miles and global warming."

Professor Ann Smith from Landcare Research, developers of the CarboNZero programme, comments:

"The NZWC sets an excellent example for other producers and exporters, as it shows how putting company environmental ethics into practice can add value to a product."
  
Dave Pearce, Chief Winemaker for Grove Mill and Sanctuary confirms this:

"From a business viewpoint achieving CarboNZero certification focuses us on energy efficiency and also reduces the risks of non-tariff trade issues, such as 'food miles'. As producers of a land-based natural product it's also a major step towards our goal of environmental sustainability."

The 2006 vintage Grove Mill and Sanctuary wines will start to carry the CarboNZero logo and are distributed internationally. Grove Mill has also recently been awarded five trophies in prestigious international wine competitions, including: 'Top Sauvignon Blanc In The World' at the IWC and 'Top Riesling in the World under 10 pounds Sterling' at the Decanter Wine Awards.