Towards a sustainable wine industry: Application of blue economy concept
BluWine empowers a sustainable and circular wine industry by applying Blue Economy principles across the entire value chain, from vineyard to winery residuals.
Despite growing awareness of sustainability in the wine sector, current practices often address individual stages of production in isolation rather than considering the entire value chain as an interconnected system. Challenges such as excessive resource consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, chemical inputs, inefficient water management, and the underutilisation of winery by-products continue to limit the sector’s environmental performance. In addition, the adoption of sustainable innovations is hindered by technical, economic, and social barriers, while opportunities for international knowledge exchange and capacity building remain fragmented.
As a result, the wine industry lacks a comprehensive framework capable of integrating environmental, social, and economic sustainability across the full production chain.
The need
The wine sector needs a holistic and scientifically validated approach that connects vineyards, wineries, residual stream management, and market actors within a single sustainable ecosystem. There is a need for innovative solutions that increase grapevine resilience, reduce chemical dependency, optimise water use as well as CO₂ and ethanol management, and transform winery waste into valuable resources.
Equally important is the need to assess the impacts (environmental, economic, and societal) of these innovations to support their large-scale adoption. To accelerate this transition, stronger cross-sectoral collaboration and expertise, and staff mobility are required to foster knowledge transfer, develop new skills, and build an international global network committed to applying Blue Economy principles to the future of wine production.
The solution
BluWine addresses the environmental and economic challenges of the wine sector by applying a Blue Economy approach across the entire wine value chain. The project integrates vineyards, wineries, winemaking processes, and the valorisation of residual streams into a single sustainable ecosystem. Through innovative solutions, BluWine aims to enhance grape resilience, optimise water consumption, manage wine ethanol content, recover carbon dioxide, and transform grape pomace into valuable resources. By combining technological innovation with environmental stewardship, the project promotes circularity, resource efficiency, and high-quality wine production.
BluWine also evaluates the socioeconomic and market factors influencing the adoption of these solutions, ensuring their long-term viability. Supported by an international network of researchers and staff exchanges, the project accelerates knowledge transfer and capacity building, fostering a more sustainable, resilient, and competitive wine industry worldwide.