Tacoronte-Acentejo avanza la investigación en el ámbito medioambiental

Measure to improve. That is the idea driving the work of the D.O. Tacoronte-Acentejo to understand, with data in hand, the environmental footprint of its vineyards and wineries. An unglamorous but decisive step towards a more sustainable wine.

A project to measure the impact

The regulatory council of this Tenerife appellation has launched, together with the island's university community, a research project focused on sustainability. The aim is to put figures to something that often stays at the level of good intentions: how much environmental impact the vineyard and winery processes really generate, from working the vine to the moment the wine reaches the market.

What has been measured

The first phase of the work has involved gathering all the necessary information from the participating estates and wineries. With that data, the study analyses the impact across several key categories:

• Carbon footprint, the best known and the one that sums up the associated emissions.
• Toxicity to people, linked to the use of certain products.
• Depletion of fossil resources, that is, the energy dependence of the process.
• Ozone layer deterioration, another benchmark environmental indicator.

From data to decisions

Collecting the information is only the beginning. Now comes the most painstaking part: analysing the data, breaking it down by estate and by winery, and translating it into concrete results for each impact category. That level of detail is what turns a study into a useful tool, because it lets each producer know where their room for improvement lies instead of working blind.

Why it matters for wine tourism

That a small appellation takes sustainability seriously says a lot about where the sector is heading. Travellers are increasingly interested in knowing how the land behind the glass is cared for, and projects like this reinforce the appeal of these wines. The Canary vineyard, grown in unique conditions, also has a scenic value well worth preserving.

An example to follow

Initiatives like this show the way for other wine regions. Measuring the environmental footprint rigorously is the first step to reducing it, and doing so from a modest appellation proves that sustainability is not only a matter for the big wineries. If you fancy discovering Canary wine, you can start by exploring its producing areas and planning a getaway.