An Industrial Ecology approach to solve wine surpluses problem: the case study of an Italian winery

The wine industry worldwide is undergoing a chronic surplus of production, estimated at more than 30 millions of hectoliters. This extra waste (unsold wines) have to be handled in order to not aggravate the wine environmental impacts. With the aim to reduce this surplus, the present research evaluates new grape uses: by blending them with other fruits in the formulation of a “100% fruit juice”. The idea is to move from a linear model, in which grapes are grown only for wine production, to a complex one, in which grapes are grown for other uses too, in order to obtain a better use of raw materials, as opposed to waste production. This research apply a particular form of Industrial Ecology, integrating raw materials among farms. In order to evaluate the idea, a life cycle assessment was carried out, to make a comparison of two scenarios (the linear and the complex). Results show reduced emissions of greenhouse gases and a reduced amount of unsold wine to be treated. The wider market scenario provides healthy products to consumers: fruit juices. Regarding this last point, it should be emphasized that this fruit juice concept is already on the market since two years. This approach to wine surplus has demonstrated that transferring part of the must to the fruit juice production lightens the environmental load of a company (increased sustainability), lightens the unsold wine problem (increased efficiency in the resources use), and expands market opportunity by providing healthy products to consumers (increased competitiveness).