The wine harvesting expectations for 2024, according to the Consortium for the protection of “Colli del Trasimeno” DOC wines (UCT Territory), led by Dr. Emanuele Bizzi, are very promising, both in terms of quantity and quality. The grapes reached an ideal phenological ripeness, with harvesting times perfectly in line, without the need for anticipation or delays. After a cool spring, the hot summer favored the development of healthy bunches, avoiding downy mildew problems. In general, agronomic management was simpler than in 2023.
Despite the positive outlook for production, the real challenge for companies remains the market: supply exceeds demand and competition is high. It therefore becomes essential to think about how to build a strong and cohesive territorial agricultural system, able to face the growing competition and the new dynamics of consumption, which are moving towards a more selective and limited demand for wine. To solve market problems and lower production costs, it makes even more sense to introduce this supply chain in a circular economy logic. The PUCCIARELLA Winery and the Consortium for the Protection of Trasimeno Wines are part of the stakeholders within the European LIVERUR Project.
The Consortium has brought together important wineries in the area for the circular management and enhancement of by-products and winemaking waste to produce renewable electricity, biomethane and composted soil improvers. The main strength lies in the fact that, for the first time, the participating companies, competitors on the market, have chosen to work together to create a sustainable business model. The planned actions are aimed at strengthening and improving the efficiency of the processing activities of the individual participants, with a specific focus on increasing the storage capacity of by- products, energy efficiency and the construction of new purifiers. We would like to make these investments part of a circular economy context. The goal is also to create new innovative plants for the capture of organic CO2 and to create district heating systems by producing heat from waste from the wine supply chain and to build a composting plant for the production of a new generation natural fertilizer: “the Composted Soil Improver from waste from the Agri-food Supply Chain (ACFA)” to enrich the soils with organic matter and combat desertification and climate change thanks to the sequestration of CO2 in the soil.
(Written by Paolo Burini – UCT)