Gonzalez Byass Tracks Plastics From the Vineyard to Your Wine Glass

NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / December 4, 2023 / SAP

Feature by Leah Cartal

Wine is a fascinating beverage with a long and storied history. Its origins can be traced back 9,000 years to China, when the residue of a fermented fruit drink was found on pottery shards in the Henan province.

Winemaking emerged in Europe several thousand years later, and it is now home to many of the world's most famous wine-producing regions. When paired with food or served for special occasions, wine consumed in moderation can awaken the senses and contribute to cherished memories. Spanish wine producer Gonzalez Byass shares this ethos, defining its purpose as to "bring moments of joy, helping people to savor and share their most precious moments."

Headquartered in Jerez de la Frontera, Gonzalez Byass was founded in 1835 as a family-owned collection of wineries across Spain's principal wine producing regions, overseeing the wine-making process from vineyard to wineglass. Grapes are harvested from its 2,000 hectares of vines under cultivation in nine wine-growing regions in Spain, Chile, and Mexico, and then pressed in traditional stone tanks, fermented, and the liquid aged in steel or oak barrels. After a few months or years, the wine is bottled and ready for consumption.

What does not usually come to mind when contemplating the art of winemaking is the amount of plastic and other non-sustainable materials that may be involved, from the material encasing the corks, to the packaging used to safely transport the bottles. Gonzalez Byass saw an opportunity to address its use of plastic and promote regenerative agriculture in its industry through the implementation of a comprehensive sustainable business strategy and circular economy program in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).

Confronting the Plastic Problem

Plastics are among the most consumed materials in agricultural industry, as they are used in large production structures, production inputs, agrochemical packaging, and food product containers, and thus generate vast amounts of waste. In response, consumers are turning away from single-use materials while governments are adopting an extended producer responsibility approach in the form of plastic taxes. These taxes are a hugely important policy tool to combat the rapidly growing amount of plastic waste and discourage the production and use of plastic packaging.