# Grapes & wine: Emissions

The carbon cost of a bottle of wine

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/grapes/emissions/

What this tab covers The greenhouse-gas footprint of the commodity at a global level, split by lifecycle phase: extraction (or farming), refining and processing, movement, usage, and recycling or end of life. Intensities are per unit of product; the global total combines intensity with world output. Also covers other environmental impacts and the main levers to cut emissions. Emission intensity 1.40 t CO2e per t range 1.4 (median) to 1.79 (mean); Clark et al. 2022: 1.72; Spanish wine EPD about 1.0 kg per 0.75 L bottle (1.36 t/t) · cradle-to-retail global median, GWP100 Global emissions per year 32.0 Mt CO2e per year 2024 · 1.4 t CO2e/t x about 22.6 Mt of wine (225.8 million hl); about 40 Mt at the 1.79 mean (indicative)

Per t of wine at retail (about 1,330 bottles); cradle-to-retail. Intensity: Poore & Nemecek 2018 (Science), median stage values as tabulated by Our World in Data (indicative); Clark et al. 2022 (PNAS), via Our World in Data; HAproWINE EPD 2013. Global total: derived from OIV 2025 and Poore & Nemecek 2018.

#### Share of footprint by lifecycle phase
 Extraction 36% Refining / processing 57% Movement 7%

#### Footprint by lifecycle phase

| Phase | Intensity | Share | Main sources of emissions | Notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| **Extraction** | about 0.5 t CO2e/t: farm about 0.6, land-use change about -0.1 | 36% | vineyard diesel, fertiliser, sprays (many passes against mildew), irrigation | Vines are perennial, so the land-use term is slightly negative on average. | Poore & Nemecek 2018 (Science), median stage values as tabulated by Our World in Data (indicative) |
| **Refining / processing** | about 0.8 t CO2e/t: winery about 0.1, packaging about 0.7 | 57% | glass bottles (the biggest single item), winery cooling, fermentation CO2 (biogenic, not counted) | A Spanish EPD put winemaking and bottling at 0.98 kg CO2e of a 1.02 kg bottle footprint. | Poore & Nemecek 2018 (Science), median stage values as tabulated by Our World in Data (indicative); HAproWINE EPD 2013 |
| **Movement** | about 0.1 t CO2e/t | 7% | sea and road freight; heavy glass | Bulk shipping in flexitanks and bottling near market cuts freight weight sharply. | Poore & Nemecek 2018 (Science), median stage values as tabulated by Our World in Data (indicative) |
| **Usage** | near zero; chilling only | – | fridges | Distribution and consumption were 0.6% of the Spanish EPD. | HAproWINE EPD 2013 |
| **Recycling / end of life** | about 0.03 kg per bottle (3% of the Spanish EPD) | – | glass recycling or landfill; pomace | Recycled glass needs less furnace energy; pomace goes to distilling, grape-seed oil and compost. | HAproWINE EPD 2013 |

#### Other environmental impacts

Table grapes: Poore & Nemecek put berries and grapes at about 1.1 t CO2e/t (median) and 1.53 (mean); Clark et al. 2022 report 8.3 for grapes, which reflects some air-freighted fruit. Vineyards are among the most heavily sprayed crops, and irrigation strains water in Maharashtra, Chile and Peru.

#### Levers to cut emissions

- Lighter bottles (about 400 g instead of 500-600 g), bag-in-box and cans
- Ship in bulk flexitanks and bottle near market
- Renewable power for winery cooling and grape cold stores
- Ship table grapes by sea rather than air

#### India

Most Indian grapes are table grapes eaten at home or shipped by sea to Europe in reefers from Nashik via JNPT, so air freight is minor. Pack-house pre-cooling and cold storage run on a grid at about 0.7 t CO2 per MWh (CEA, indicative).
 Emission figures are indicative global averages from the life-cycle studies named; actual footprints vary widely by site, energy mix and method.

## Other sections

- [Summary](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/grapes/index.md)
- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/grapes/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/grapes/correlation/index.md)
- [Extraction](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/grapes/extraction/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/grapes/production/index.md)
- [Stocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/grapes/stocks/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/grapes/cycles/index.md)
- [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/grapes/trading/index.md)
- [Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/grapes/movement/index.md)
- [Criticality](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/grapes/criticality/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/grapes/characteristics/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/grapes/links/index.md)