Miami, FL Domaine Bousquet, a pioneering sustainable leader in the wine industry, has released a half-year update to its first ever sustainability impact report, published on Earth Day 2024. This report consists of data and updates for the first half of 2024, based on information collected up to December 2023. On a level playing field, this report is internally focused as well as supply chain interactions, where major improvements have been implemented within the shortest period of time.
From 1 January to 30 June 2024, Domaine Bousquet had still wines in lightweight bottles—defined as less than 420 g—from 74% of its total output in 2023 up to 95%. Taken together, still and sparkling wines, the percentages were 92%, having increased year on year from 71%. Anne Bousquet said, “Light is right: less waste, significantly less CO2 emitted during production, and fewer raw materials are used.”.
The 160 kg (353 lbs) of CO2 saved for each 3,000 bottles produced by the company from switching from 540 g to 400 g bottles will produce 35% more bottles. To give that a little better perspective, 1,200 kg of glass can produce either 222,222 heavy bottles at 540 g or 300,000 lightweight bottles at 400 g. Domaine Bousquet will be in compliance with the Bottle Weight Accord of the Sustainable Wine Roundtable for October 2023. Here, the proposition is that the average weight of all its 750ml still-wine bottles will weigh less than or equal to 420g by the year 2026 down from 550g.
Domaine Bousquet is also doing very well in terms of waste management. Other than lightweight packages, Domaine Bousquet has achieved some very impressive benchmarks in terms of waste management. By the end of 2023, the winery recycled 96.8% of its waste; so far, in mid-2024, this increases to 97.6%. The company has already composted 910,000 kg (2,006,204 lbs) of organic waste in 2024, a fourfold increase over the preceding year, which has required considerable further infrastructure and space to cope with the increased volume of organic waste.
Domaine Bousquet will strive for transparency and accountability in reporting progress toward sustainability, making a commitment to issue annual updates on the winery website. The detail annual reports will be published every Earth Day, prepared in consultation with Europe’s Terra Institute.