European Researchers Launch Wine Project to Cut Emissions

Researchers in Italy and across Europe have launched a four-year project aimed at cutting emissions, waste and water use in wine production, as the industry faces growing pressure to reduce its environmental footprint without sacrificing quality or efficiency.

The project, called BluWine, was presented by the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences at the University of Milan in partnership with Assoenologi. It brings together 60 researchers from nine international institutions, including universities and research centers involved in an EU-funded program backed by 700,000 euros through the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Staff Exchange initiative.

The effort is built around what its organizers describe as applying the “blue economy” to wine. Daniela Fracassetti, a professor at the University of Milan and the project coordinator, said the goal is to make the wine supply chain more sustainable at every stage, from grape growing to winemaking, while also recovering resources and finding uses for byproducts. The project is meant to combine work already underway with new research on viticulture, oenology and waste recovery.

The researchers have set four main lines of work. One focuses on reducing chemical use by 30%, especially pesticides in vineyards and sulfur dioxide in winemaking. That work includes gene expression analysis, assisted evolution technologies, RNA interference and other tools. Another target is lowering ethanol levels through the use of non-Saccharomyces yeasts and new production methods.

The project also aims to cut carbon dioxide emissions from fermentation by reusing up to 80% of the gas for algae cultivation and beverage carbonation. In another area, the researchers want to reduce fresh water use by half through green purification systems for winery operations.

A fourth line of research centers on grape pomace, the solid residue left after pressing grapes. The team wants to recover 60% of that material by extracting bioactive compounds that could be used in dietary supplements, food products and cosmetics. The pomace could also be reused in winemaking to help diversify production and strengthen aromatic profiles in grapes and blends with weaker aromas. Researchers are also studying whether it can be turned into biostimulants for vineyard nutrition that affect phenol production and aroma precursors.

The project’s organizers say those goals have already drawn interest from companies in pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. They also plan to reduce chemical compounds used in analysis by up to 10% and to measure the environmental and economic effects of each proposed innovation.

The work is scheduled to run for four years, but researchers say some wineries could begin adopting parts of it sooner if the methods prove practical.