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In Other News -Regenerative Agriculture
Improving The Health of Our Vineyards
By Jessie Taylor
What’s in your wine glass could depend on what's in the soil. This is the lesson from a groundbreaking study, which has shown that focusing on soil health can dramatically affect the quality of wine produced at South African vineyards.
The study focuses on the concept of regenerative viticulture. This looks to restore soil health by mimicking natural processes. When soil health improves, it is able to absorb more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and help reduce global warming. However, the build-up of organic carbon in the soil also improves the health of vineyards, their resilience to erosion, and drought resistance.
Understanding The Impact Of Grazing Animals
The study by Stellenbosch University and Hartenberg Family Vineyards revealed that a single parcel of vineyard and vintage can produce two different wines and that this can be influenced by introducing grazing animals in a controlled manner to the vineyard.
Cattle, sheep, and other ruminants keep the weeds under control and add organic matter, which helps sequestrate carbon in the soil. Hartenberg viticulturist Wilhelm Joubert said that once they introduced highdensity grazing, they started to see nature responding. Early tests after introducing animals to the vineyards demonstrated positive results within the first season, as the cattle’s treading hooves, grazing habits, saliva, manure, and urine improved soil health.
That discovery set the farm on a course to regenerative agriculture, a farming system that focuses on improving soil health, biodiversity, and ecosystem function. It aims to restore and maintain the health of the land and rests on the principles of building and maintaining healthy soil, promoting biodiversity, managing water resources sustainably, mitigating climate change, and creating resilient farming systems. Ruminants are an essential component of regenerative agriculture.
Hartenberg has been pesticidefree since the early 2000s, relying on biological control methods. These include the introduction of ladybirds to combat leafroll virus, which is transmitted by female mealybugs, and indigenous wasps to control mealybugs. The farm has also discontinued the use of rodent bait stations, instead relying on barn owls for natural control, and introduced Indian runner ducks to control snails and other bugs in the vineyard.
The farm is home to sheep, as well as Ankole, Dexter, and Nguni cattle.
The Impacts of Regenerative Agriculture
Hartenberg Winemaker Carl Schultz said there was an impressive improvement in the soil biodiversity and health in the first year since they brought animals into the vineyard. However, he and Joubert wanted to compare grapes from vineyards where cattle graze as opposed to the vineyard without cattle.
The ruminant portion produced slightly fewer bunches per vine and smaller berries. While this would result in less production per hectare, smaller berries result in a greater concentration of fruit. They also achieved physiological ripeness at lower sugar levels, which can lower the resultant alcohol.
In 2022 and 2023, Schultz and Joubert divided a single vineyard parcel into two — a control group and a densely grazed portion — and found that the wine from the two blocks differed substantially.
An additional benefit is that instead of having to replant their cover crops every year, natural cover crops are starting to grow. Cover crops are essential for slowing soil erosion and smothering weeds.
A process that removes the need to purchase new cover crops every year has the promise of additional financial benefits. Finding sustainable solutions to make the wine industry resilient to the impacts of climate change has significant economic implications. In 2022, the South African wine and brandy industry generated an economy-wide contribution of R56.5 billion, constituting 0.9% of the nation's GDP at market prices.
The wine and brandy industry has played a significant role in rural areas, tourism, foreign revenue and the country’s brand reputation, with more than 89,000 hectares of vineyards in the Western Cape, Northern Cape and other regions.
Wine tourism boosts local economies. In 2022, wine tourism contributed R3.05billion to the GDP. The industry directly employed 6,304 permanent workers, 4,798 peak season casual employees and 2,870 casual workers during other times in 2022.
Yet the sector faces threats from global warming. South Africa has lost more than 10% of its total area under vines since 2013, due to prolonged drought conditions, sharply rising cost pressures and reduced profitability. Some producers h ave uprooted vines in favour of more profitable crops such as citrus, plums and blueberries.
