Sustainable winegrowing in practice
Sustainable winegrowing means healthier soils, greater biodiversity and careful use of water and other resources. Sustainable Winegrowing Australia membership and certification helps producers measure progress, understand what’s working and identify where to improve.
Learn more about sustainability
Sustainable Winegrowing Australia builds on decades of sustainability work across the Australian grape and wine sector. It brings together the strengths of Entwine Australia, launched in 2009 with a focus on measurement and benchmarking, and Sustainable Australia Winegrowing (SWA), which focused on self-assessment and improving vineyard practices. Launched nationally in 2019, SWA created a single framework for grapegrowers and winemakers to measure performance, identify opportunities for improvement and track progress over time.
What is the Sustainable Winegrowing Australia (SWA) Program
Sustainable Winegrowing Australia is the Australian wine industries national sustainability data capture and improvement program designed to help grapegrowers, wineries and wine businesses understand and improve their performance across key environmental and business risk areas.
Through a structured data survey and self-assessment workbook, SWA members can:
- Monitor key Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) indicators
- Track year-on-year progress
- Benchmark against industry data
- Identify areas for operational improvement
The program also offers certification, providing independent verification of sustainability performance and access to the SWA trust mark for use in marketing materials.
It is free to register with Sustainable Winegrowing Australia and participation is open to all grape growers, winemakers and wine producers in Victoria. There are three registration options available -
- Vineyard
- Winery
- Wine business *
* Note: a wine business registration is for wine producers who partner with winemakers and grapegrowers to create their wines.
Some winemakers and grapegrowers may find they need to create multiple memberships under one registration to accommodate for their business model. For example, producers who own a winery and vineyard will need a membership for each.
All registrations must be approved by AWRI before participants can commence the membership process. Once approved, registrants will be able to see the steps required to progress.
There are two key information and data components new registrants to complete:
- Data Survey
- Self-Assessment Workbook
The Data Survey captures key operational and sustainability data, while the Self-Assessment Workbook allows participants to review and assess their current practices. Together, these provide a comprehensive view of sustainability performance and indicate readiness to progress towards SWA certification.
Upon completion of these components, an invoice for membership will be issued. Once the data has been submitted and the invoice paid, participants will undergo a final approval process.
Victorian members have the option to elect to be visible via the SWA Member Register.
There are varying membership types and every business is different. See Sustainable Wine Australia's Program Terms for more information. Membership fees are charged annually.
Evidence shows us what’s working and where there is room to improve. Collecting consistent data helps growers track progress over time, compare performance and make more informed decisions about what to focus on next.
Registered Sustainable Winegrowing Australia members who complete the online workbook and rank themselves as a score of 2 or above are ready to enter the process of SWA certification.
To learn more about the certification process, visit the Sustainable Winegrowing Australia website.
Explore Sustainability Resources by Program Area
The following focus areas underpin the Sustainable Winegrowing Australia digital data book and self-assessment module required to be completed to become a Sustainable Winegrowing Australia vineyard member. These resources provide a practical starting point for producers who would like to better understand their reporting requirements as part of the program.
Not sure where to start?
Wine Victoria’s Sustainability & Innovation Lead can help connect you with the right research, expertise, programs and people to move an idea or challenge forward.
