How well are we doing?

The latest KPI’s (key performance indicators) in March 2021 are showing that almost half, 149.7 million liters of wine, are exported in flexi’s, the bulk bags. This is almost 50% of all wine exported from New Zealand.

As previously stated in week 4, this is saving:

• carbon emissions for transport. Use of ships over planes
• solid waste, bottles, packaging.

However to get to the point of exporting award wining wine, the mahi, the work starts at home on the land. You have been introduced and learnt about:

Week 1.

• the concept of kaitaikatanga and the kaitiaki’s of the land
• pono
• wineries that embrace the concept caring for the land

Week 2

• SWNZ and certification to ensure that our practices and sustainability are recognised

Week 3

• regenerative agriculture
• biodynamics
• organic practices

Week 4

• turning waste into a positive factor and as an influencer
• examples of local wineries who are recognised and internationally acclaimed for their sustainable practice.

Dr. Stewart Field, Viticulturalist and Researcher at NMIT says “New Zealand is currently leading the way with sustainability in the wine industry, however sustainability is a continuous movement that can always be improved upon”.

Ngarita Warden, Winemaker at NMIT states “As New Zealand is a small and sparsely populated country, sustainability is something that is in the minds of many New Zealanders. We want to keep the environment useable for our future generations. In the wine industry, companies are continuously looking for ways to improve aspects of performance in terms of environment, regeneration and reducing pollution. It is always a work in progress.”