Sustainable Practices

NEW FOR 2007

As part of Grove Mill's commitment to reducing its carbon footprint and environmental impacts, we have put in place some great new innovations for the coming vintage and beyond.

Waste Heat System

Tanks are now hooked up to the waste heat system. This will allow us to use reclaimed energy for heating purposes such as, preparing wine prior to bottling and raising the temperature of tanks for fermentation. The waste heat system will also be utilised to heat water for cleaning purposes in the winery. The major benefit for all of this is reducing the amount of electricity used.

Packaging

We have sourced wine bottles that are lighter and glass that is slightly thinner. Consequently we are able to use smaller cartons for packing our wines and can fit more cartons onto a pallet. All of this results in 25% more wine that can fit into a container which is used to ship wine to the UK and USA. Our overseas customers can now order more wine per container, therefore reducing a significant amount of carbon emissions due the efficiency of our packing configurations.

Refrigeration and Temperature Control

Part of our refrigeration system has been upgraded. Insulated refrigeration lines means we are using less energy.

Tanks have been computerised to monitor temperature. This enabels us to control the temperature of the tanks, minimising fluctuations and increasing the temperature consistency.

Vineyard

Our Viticulture team is trialing a new organic protection against Botrytis. If successful we will be looking at using it in all of our company vineyards.

Doug, our company Viticulturist, has been developing some new vineyards. As apart of the set up, he has incorporated longer rows. The advantage of this is a reduction of the number of times the tractor needs to turn around; consequently the diesel consumption per hectare is reduced.

Initiatives

Grove Mill's philosophy is to produce premium quality wine with minimal environmental impact. The commitment to this philosophy is apparent through all aspects of the Grove Mill business. Grove Mill looks to continually improve its processes to minimise its environmental impacts.

CarboNZero^{Cert TM} certification

Grove Mill Winery is proud to be the first winery in the world to achieve CarboNZero Certification. Certification involves addressing climate change impacts with the aim of adding no net carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to the atmosphere during the production and distribution of our wines.

Habitat Restoration

Since 1996 a wetland that sits beside the Grove Mill winery has been restored with the planting of over 4,000 native plants. With the growth of the trees and shrubs has come a corresponding increase in birdlife. It is the wildlife inhabiting this wetland that has provided inspiration for the development of our wine labels.The Grove Mill symbol is the Southern Bell frog, which is also found in the winery wetland and has become the iconic symbol for Grove Mill’s philosophy. Frogs within nature are symbols of environmental quality due to their semi-permeable skin and their susceptibility to environmental change. Because they are nature’s indicator of environmental quality we think it is fitting that they symbolise our care for the environment and our corresponding care for the quality of our wines.

Waste Water

The development of a unique waste water system for the winery reflects the ongoing commitment to conservation, recycling and caring for our environment. The water is pumped to settling tanks, processed in the filtration unit and then irrigated onto a coppiced tree block adjacent to the winery. The water is aerated by sprinklers where some of it evaporates, while the remaining water falls to the ground. As a consequence soil micro-flora chew up the nutrients.

Insulated Warehousing

The winery and warehouse are both fully insulated. This means no additional energy is required to either heat or cool the warehouse. Insulation ensures a constant internal temperature suitable for storing wine. This commitment to quality has guaranteed that all Grove Mill wines are given the best possible care from the time the grapes arrive at the winery to the time the wine is dispatched to market.

Our Award-Winning "Cold Cellar" Winery

In 2002 our new white wine winery or the "Cold Cellar" was developed. It has been specifically and solely designed for white wine production and increased Grove Mill's total winery capacity to 3100 tonnes.

In keeping with our commitment to conservation, the Cold Cellar has been installed with a passive cooling system. This fully computerised system pulls cold air in from outside which is then used to "cool the winery down". Energy is conserved as the internal temperature of the winery remains constant, minimising electricity requirements for tank cooling.

In June 2003 our electrical contractor, Tyco Services Electrical, won the electricity industry's supreme award for innovation and technical excellence, picking up the Electricity Contractor's Association Safepower Excellence Award for its work on the Cold Cellar development.

Heat Recovery

During the winemaking process a huge amount of heat is lost through our refrigeration plant. The installation of super-conductors on the plant recycles this heat, which is then stored as hot water in insulated tanks. This hot water is then used within the winery for cleaning purposes and the warming of wine for fermentation.

Distribution of Products

The appreciation of our environment does not cease once our wines are in the bottle. The installation of a pallet wrapper has reduced the amount of plastic going out of the warehouse by one tonne per annum. Our commitment to reduce packaging waste results in less waste our markets have to dispose of.

Use of organic fertilizer

In 2006 we used over 500 tonnes of waste grape marc on our vineyards as a mulch. This provides the soils with increased nutrients and encourages the growth of organic matter. Chemical application of fertilizer was therefore not required on these vineyards.

Recycling

We recycle plastic, paper, cardboard, aluminum and glass.

Looking forward...

We have identified the key environmental areas we want to make continuing improvements. These are:

Energy efficiency
Waste management
Greenhouse gas emissions
Health and Safety
Resource conservation
Social responsibility
Ecosystem enhancement

Environmental Programmes

Sustainable Winegrowing NZ

In 2005 Grove Mill was accredited by Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand for its practices in the winery and vineyards. The programme focuses on all manner of environmental issues affecting the wine industry in New Zealand. It promotes a measured approach to use of sprays, water and energy. It also fosters staff awareness, safe chemical handling, plus waste reduction, reuse and recycling. An ongoing initiative to help our growers gain entry into the programme is in place. The aim is for all Grove Mill wines to be 100% accredited for the 2008 vintage.

Green Globe 21®

Green Globe 21® is a company standard for the winery and vineyard. Entry into this programme will see us benchmark our environmental impacts and aid us in making year on year improvements. Participation will allow Grove Mill to move forward to a more structured approach to environmental management. Grove Mill is proud to annouce that from November 2006 it is a Green Globe benchmarked company.

Enviro-Mark® NZ

Enviromark is an Environmental Management System run by Landcare Research New Zealand. The Enviro-Mark® NZ certification process is an easy, step-by-step pathway to gaining objective evidence of our accomplishments in Health, Safety and Environmental (HSE) management. This process has recently been entered into and we hope to achieve certification by the 2007 vintage.