The San Marco Carbon Footprint Project San Marco has created, through the “San Marco CarbonFootprint” Project co-financed by the Ministry of the Environment and Protection of Land and Sea, the Carbon Footprint of the Frascati D.O.C. wine. The chosen functional unit is the classic 0.75 liter bottle. The project made it possible to carry out the inventory, quantification, analysis and evaluation of all equivalent CO2 emissions attributable to the product in each phase of its life cycle (agricultural, corporate, transport, use and end-of-life). and for every single activity connected to it.

The implementation phases of the project

The calculation of the product carbon footprint (CFP) includes the quantification of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions along the entire life cycle of the product, from the extraction of raw materials to the final disposal of the product (“from cradle to grave” ).

Analysis methodologies

The analysis of the Carbon Footprint for the reduction of emissions in the life cycle of Frascati D.O.C. Cantine San Marco was carried out also taking into consideration the following standards and reference tools:

– the GHG Protocol: constitutes the accounting basis most used internationally by governments and companies to understand, quantify and manage greenhouse gas emissions;

– the BS PAS 2050 of 2011: allow you to measure the environmental impact of company activities, products and services and to measure greenhouse gas emissions for their life cycle. These references are collected in documents issued, among others, by British Standard and DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs), the British government department responsible for environmental, food and rural policies and legislation. British Standard and DEFRA in turn use the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method established by ISO 14040 and 14044 standards. The quantification and analysis of the Carbon Footprint was carried out following the new univocal regulatory reference at an international level: ISO 14067.2.

The inventory and calculation of emissions

The inventory and calculation of emissions were carried out through the preferential use of “primary data”, obtained through direct surveys. The data were therefore organized by reporting them within the various activities and sub-activities that make up the Phases explicitly foreseen by the ISO 14067.2 standard.

The Agricultural Phase concerns the complex of activities attributable to the production of the grapes and also includes the transport of the same from the point of production to the company (the production site of Cantine San Marco).
The Business Phase includes: a) electricity consumption for wine production; b) fuel consumption in the Company; c) the use of packaging materials and product packaging; d) any other activity directly linked to the creation of the product and carried out within the company boundaries.

Transport includes activities linked to the supply of products within the company and the distribution of the finished product – locally, regionally and abroad – from the San Marco gate to the distribution platforms, which take care of the distribution of the product in Italy and in export countries , or to retail distribution points (local wine shops and restaurants). For the purposes of the product Carbon Footprint, the CO2-e emissions linked to the storage of the product at the Distribution Centers were also accounted for.
Use and End-of-Life includes accounting for emissions resulting from: a) from the use of electricity by end consumers for cooling the bottle, being indicated for Frascati D.O.C. a consumption temperature between 10 and 12°C; b) from the disposal of packaging, glass and other packaging materials that are not intended for recycling or reuse.
The Carbon Footprint of Frascati D.O.C.
The carbon footprint measures the quantity of CO2-e emitted for each functional unit, i.e. for each single bottle of wine (0.75 litres) produced by Cantine San Marco. Using the carbon footprint it is possible to measure the impact that the product (from the cultivation of the grapes to the sale of the finished product, its consumption and the disposal of the individual parts that compose it) produces on the environment in terms of the amount of gas greenhouse, measured in units of carbon dioxide. Based on the Emissions Inventory, the different quantities of inputs and outputs were multiplied by the appropriate factor and, therefore, added within the same category to which they belonged.
The result is made up of a set of emission values ​​which, added, define a single dimensionless value (the equivalent CO2), which quantifies the environmental impact associated with the product.
The calculations obtained were verified “a posteriori” for each calculation element (quantity, units, emission factors). Among agricultural activities, the use of fertilizers and pesticides (54%) and the use of machinery (31%) are the activities with the highest CO2-e emissions.
Packaging is the largest source of CO2-e emissions, representing 33% of overall emissions.
The majority of emissions (29%) are linked, in particular, to the life cycle of the glass container (the bottle). The distribution of the finished product produces the majority of emissions attributable to transport: 247.89 t of CO2-e. Emissions linked to the Use and End-of-Life of the product at 30.7 t CO2-e. Also adding the emissions deriving from the waste produced in the vineyard for the cultivation of grapes (accounted for in the Agricultural Phase), 40.2 t of CO2-e derive from the waste.

Overall, a bottle of white wine (0.75 litres) Frascati D.O.C. Cantine San Marco emits (vintage 2011): 1,220 kg of CO2-e

Measures to reduce emissions in the life cycle of Frascati D.O.C.
Result: through the implementation of the identified measures, in the first year it will be possible to reduce 4% of the total associated emissions
to the product.

Measures for the neutralization of residual emissions:
Residual emissions can be “neutralised” gradually, through the implementation of a carbon-oriented business plan
neutrality”, through the following possible actions:
– National or international compensatory actions through planting.
– Carbon offset operated through international and national compensatory actions.
– National compensatory actions (forest carbon sinks) for non-productive activities (e.g. promotional activities).

How

From the vineyard

– Use of efficient and low-consumption vehicles and machines.
– Promotion of eco-sustainable practices.

to the company
– Recovery of bottles for re-use in the production process
– Adaptation of industrial refrigeration through efficient solutions and systems based on refrigerants with reduced environmental impact
– Progressive adaptation of packaging materials and product packaging

Energy efficiency and emissions reduction interventions in the production process up to distribution

– Installation of a domestic column (compressor) for methane and adaptation of the company fleet (acquisition of methane vehicles for local and regional distribution).
– Development of selection criteria for suppliers and transporters responsible for distributing the product based on the principle of environmental sustainability and demonstrable commitment to reducing emissions.

Danilo Norarnicola

Commercial Director