More than half of the 350 people who attended the Central Coast Vineyard Team's Sustainable Ag Expo are professionals in the wine industry. 

San Luis Obispo -- Does green farming net greenbacks for farmers? In preparing its annual Sustainable Ag Expo held Monday and Tuesday, the Central Coast Vineyard Team saved that key question for the last session, Sustainability Initiatives in the Marketplace.

According to Peter Mondavi Jr., proprietor of the family-owned Charles Krug Winery, the answer is “yes,” but only if the message is spread the right way. “I believe it has helped us in the marketplace” Mondavi said of sustainably farming C. Mondavi & Sons’ 850 vineyard acres. “The press is very interested in (sustainability). There’s a lot of press associated with that type of move.”

He cautioned, however, that while consumers in some regional markets are very interested in responsible farming practices, others “couldn’t care less.” The statement echoed another raised during Monday afternoon breakout session about vineyard certification: The farther east you go, the less interested the average consumer is in sustainability. “Chicago is about the border for that,” one panelist said.

Mondavi referenced a study about eco-labeling strategies published by the American Association of Wine Economists. According to the study, Mondavi said, certified organic wineries that relied on marketing to disseminate their message were able to charge about 13% more per bottle. Wines with an organic wine certification noted on their label, however, saw a 20% decrease in bottle price.

Greenwashing
What’s behind the disparity? Dr. Gail Kirby, marketing professor at Santa Clara University, said that the onslaught of terms like green, sustainable and organic has left consumers skeptical about green marketing, especially when the product in question costs more and there’s no explanation for why.

Adopting a common identity is where Daniel Sonke, a representative from the Stewardship Index for Specialty Crops, comes in. Sonke is working with the organization to form metrics that assess progress along the sustainability continuum -- part of a larger movement the group hopes to lead from a best-practices approach to a performance metrics approach.

The shift is increasingly important, he said, as large corporations like Wal-Mart are demanding their vendors adopt sustainable practices or lose their selling platforms. Currently, winegrape growers can be certified organic by more than a dozen organizations. The Stewardship Index hopes to form the industry standard: one set of metrics accepted by all sustainable wholesalers and retailers, so that growers can obtain one audit and use the same paperwork when selling to all their buyers.

“Regulators are continually asking us to demonstrate how all these practices are cleaning up water, cleaning up air and measuring it in some way,” Sonke said. “We need way to communicate improvement to regulators so we can all stay in business.”

The Stewardship Index for Specialty Crops’ pilot program is scheduled to launch next year, and to date more than 300 growers and non-governmental organizations have signed up to participate, Sonke said. Eventually, the group hopes to be able to track each product’s water use throughout the supply chain, finding ways to be more efficient and save money.

Growers interested in providing input during this stage are encouraged to visit stewardshipindex.org and sign up for metrics-review committees. Metrics currently being considered include air quality, nutrients, pesticides, soil health, water use and waste. “I encourage more ag folks to get involved,” Sonke said. “The more real farms involved in this process, the better the results.”

More than half of the 350 attendees at the Sustainable Ag Expo came from grapegrowing and winemaking backgrounds, said CCVT executive director Kris O’Connor. “The turnout and positive feedback confirms that ag professionals are very interested in sustainability from an environmental, economic, and human resource standpoint,” she said.