What about the environment?

Abstract

Purpose Fungus-resistant grape varieties (FRGVs) are the key to more environment-friendly wine growing. This paper aims to examine whether German consumers are willing to buy environment-friendly wines. The study focuses on reducing the amount of fungicides applied and the improvement of the carbon footprint, which are both related to the FRGVs . Furthermore, a cluster analysis leads to more insights into the consumer groups that are open to environment-friendly wine. Design/methodology/approach A choice experiment was conducted among 1,500 German wine drinkers with the following attributes: “reduction of pesticides”, “reduction of carbon emissions”,“familiarity with the grape variety”,“organic certification”, the slogan “better for the environment” and“price”. The individual-level, part-worth utilities were estimated using the Hierarchical Bayes method. The Ward’s method was used to cluster the individual-level, part-worth utilities. The participants’ wine involvement and environmentalism are used to further analyse the sample. Findings The most important attribute is “price”, followed by the “familiarity with the grape variety” and the “reduction of pesticides” and of “carbon emissions”. The least important attribute is “better for the environment”. The cluster analysis results in three clusters: the green-minded, the traditionalists and the price-minded. Practical implications The insights about the consumer acceptance of environment-friendly wines can be used to market these wines more effectively to consumers. Originality/value This is the first study that combines a choice experiment with attributes that are derived from the benefits of fungus-resistant grape varieties.

Social Economy, Environmental Proactivity, Eco-Innovation and Performance in the Spanish Wine Sector

“…This statistical technique, which allows groups of firms with homogeneous behaviors to be identified, has been widely used in the management literature in order to generate strategic typologies in different sectors of activity [27]. It is still widely used today [28][29][30]. Indeed, a recent work on the environmental behavior of SMEs in the wine sector opted for this statistical technique [1].…”

Short supply chains and the adoption of fungus‐resistant grapevine varieties

“…This development goes along with stronger emphasis on short supply chains in European agriculture and policy (e.g., Aubry & Kebir, 2013; Chiffoleau, Millet‐Amrani, Rossi, Rivera‐Ferre, & Merino, 2019). Here also the use of specific ‘low pesticide’ wine production labels could be promising (Nesselhauf et al, 2019). Along these lines, the integration of fungus‐resistant varieties into existing labeling structures, such as for the appellation of origin shall have priority.…”

“…However, results from taste testing do not necessarily translate into wine sales. Previous studies found consumers are willing to pay less for varieties they are not familiar with which is likely the case for many fungus‐resistant varieties (Nesselhauf, Fleuchaus, & Theuvsen, 2019). In contrast, Vecchio, Pomarici, Giampietri, and Borrello (2022) found consumers were willing to pay more for fungus‐resistant wine than conventional (i.e., from non fungus‐resistant varieties) wine on informal occasions while on formal occasions there was no difference in willingness to pay for fungus‐resistant and conventional wine.…”

Oenological potential of wines produced from disease‐resistant grape cultivars

“…A later study of wine consumers in Germany found that price was the most important point for consumers when selecting a wine, with grape cultivar coming second. They also noted that the environmental credentials of DRHGCs, specifically the reduction in pesticide usage and carbon emissions associated with their production, could offset any disadvantage caused by consumer unfamiliarity (Nesselhauf et al., 2019).…”

“…This paper summarizes the current literature on the chemistry of DRHGCs and on the adaptation of winemaking methods to suit the production of high‐quality wine from DRHGCs. Resistance from consumers, producers, and wholesale buyers has been noted, but this is something that can be overcome with appropriate education (Fuentes Espinoza et al., 2018; Nesselhauf et al., 2019), as is discussed in Section 2.3. Nonetheless, it is suggested that DRHGCs have great potential for the production of high‐quality wines in a sustainable manner.…”