The best terroir doesn’t mean a thing without the workers who tend to the vineyards. Similarly, the most environmentally sound practices don’t add up to much if issues like clean water are ignored close to home.
That’s why true sustainability extends to practicing social responsibility, giving back to local communities and providing assistance to employees.
“To us, sustainability isn’t just what we do in the field, it’s the people, too,” says Julia Zuccardi, who spearheads community programs at Bodega Santa Julia in Mendoza, Argentina.
Read on to learn how her team and other producers the world over are benefitting the greater good.
Bodega Santa Julia
Argentina
In addition to providing daycare for workers’ children, the winery’s Santa Rosa estate offers adult workshops and education programs. An onsite cultural center features a gym, library and computers with internet access.
Chalk Hill Wines
Australia
The McLaren Vale winery works with the Homeless Grapes Project, donating Shiraz picked by volunteers to create wine. All of the proceeds go to the Hutt St Centre, which serves the homeless in South Australia by providing education, training, healthcare and other valuable support services.
Bodegas Emilio Moro
Spain
The Emilio Moro Foundation is involved with social initiatives all over the world. In Mexico, the foundation collaborates with the Cántaro Azul Foundation to provide clean water for rural schools in Chiapas and Oaxaca, benefitting approximately 15,000 children.
Closer to the winery’s home in the Ribera del Duero, the foundation worked with the Mensajeros por la Paz Association to serve thousands of breakfasts to homeless people at the Iglesia de San Anton in Madrid.
Fetzer
California
Fetzer is a Certified B Corporation, a status given to for-profit businesses that demonstrate social responsibility. Its Re3 program engages employees. Other benefits include free access to produce grown in an onsite organic garden, English as a Second Language courses and financial wellness programs.
Grandes Vinos
Spain
In 2007, this collective of winegrowers in the village of Cariñena began producing a wine called Vino Solidario (Solidarity Wine) to benefit the Fundación Down Zaragoza. All profits from its sales are donated to the nonprofit organization each year and go toward care and support services for those with Down syndrome and other intellectual or developmental disorders.
Last Updated: June 27, 2023
