Project Description

The EU wine sector is key for the economic, social, and environmental sustainability of many rural regions, as it boosts economies, provides employment, and preserves the landscape, thus greatly contributing to regional and rural development. Wine production in Europe is mostly performed by small and medium sized wineries. Most of these wineries rely on traditional methods and equipment which results in limited efficiencies and inconsistent products, limiting the positive sustainability impact of wine sector on regional economies and ecosystems. To help these wineries in improving their production economic and environmental performance, an interregional partnership has been established between key actors from the quadruple helix (research institutions, innovating SMEs, wine producer association).

Together, the partnership will upscale SMARTWINERY – a range of technological innovations at key production steps that are integrated with a digital monitoring and data analysis platform. SMARTWINERY doubles the processing capacity, reduces energy consumption by 35% and decreases greenhouse gas emissions by 25% (compared to traditional methods) while guaranteeing optimum wine quality. In the project, the partnership will scale-up this range of solutions into an industrial demo plant and perform a full-scale demonstration in preparation for market deployment. To ensure relevance of the solution, wine producers from Spain and Greece will be actively engaged in the co-creation process.

Furthermore, to ensure impact throughout the main European wine producing regions, key stakeholders in the wine sector will be involved in the organised workshops and seminars. Sustainability and interregional impact after the project will be guaranteed through a range of activities paving the way for market launch. This way, the project will, in the long term, contribute to boosting the economic, social, and environmental sustainability of European regions.