Berry Bros. & Rudd dives into regenerative viticulture collaboration

By Jo Gilbert

Published: 24 November, 2022

Fine wine and spirits merchant Berry Bros. & Rudd (BBR) has announced a new collaboration with the Regenerative Viticulture Foundation, as it aims to ‘lead the industry’ on its journey towards increasingly sustainable vineyard practices.

The collaboration follows on from other sustainability objectives at BBR, including becoming Net Zero Carbon and plastic free across the entire business by 2030.

Now, via the Foundation, the merchant is investing in initiatives which support producers who wish to move regenerative viticulture – a movement which looks to build long term sustainable production by focusing on soil health, rather than short term yields.

The aim is to include all producers, whether or not they are organic or biodynamic. It also intends to communicate with colleagues, clients and consumers on how the benefits can be reaped by all.

“The purpose of the regenerative movement is compelling,” Mark Pardoe MW at Berry Bros. & Rudd said. “With our own strong belief in the necessity for our industry to be more sustainable, we believe this is something that we should encourage our producers to adopt as they can, little by little.

“We want to help them find answers and solutions to the questions and challenges to work towards a sustainable future. We have aligned ourselves with the recently formed Regenerative Viticulture Foundation to help them spread the word, and work with our supplier base to better understand what is possible.”

The popularity of regenerative agriculture and its key tenets have gathered momentum in recent years. As a conservation and rehabilitation approach, it aims to improve farming and agriculture ecosystems by increasing biodiversity above and below ground, improving the water cycle, supporting carbon sequestration and increasing resilience to climate change.

For viticulture, this means keeping the soil covered, using cover crops and mulches, introducing animal grazing, incorporating trees and biodiversity reserves into the vineyard landscape and minimising the use of synthetic treatments.

Elsewhere, BBR’s ESG strategy aims to decarbonise its entire operations by 2030, while also ‘lead with family values to ensure the business is in shape for future generations’ as the business looks to celebrate its 325^th anniversary in 2023.

Justin Howard-Sneyd MW from the Regenerative Viticulture Foundation added: “Our mission is to spread the word about the benefits of regenerative viticulture, and to help bring more growers to the regenerative movement, and quickly. Berry Bros. & Rudd has shown real vision and leadership on this topic, and we are delighted to be working together, as the first of many retailers and wine importers who will help us with our mission.”

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