Napa-Green-Land-Sign

Napa Green Celebrates ‘Down to Earth Month’ with an Enhanced Commitment To Climate Action

Napa Valley, CA — This April, the California wine industry has been celebrating Down to Earth Month and the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Dozens of Napa Valley vintners and growers have taken to social media to share videos and photos spotlighting their commitment to caring for nature. Napa Green is celebrating the achievements and leadership of its certified sustainable members. The organization is announcing that in the coming months, the Napa Green Land program will evolve beyond recognizing two regional programs that certify environmental compliance to become a next level, stand-alone climate action and environmental stewardship certification.

“The Napa Green program is a testament to the Napa Valley wine industry’s commitment to stewardship, collaboration and innovation. For all that the program and its participants have accomplished to date, we are confident that the best is yet to come,” shares Linda Reiff, President and CEO of the Napa Valley Vintners.

Napa County growers have increased the amount of acreage under the Napa Green Land umbrella, working with either Fish Friendly Farming or LandSmart, from roughly 20,000 acres in 2015 to more than 36,000 acres in 2020. More than 80% of the Napa County growers are certified or enrolled and working toward certification with these two programs. Practices to prevent erosion and sediment runoff, reduce or eliminate the use of potentially harmful pesticides, maximize water efficiency, preserve and restore river habitat and commit to social equity all contribute to the health and resilience of the Napa River Watershed.

“The Napa Valley wine industry has always been a leader in the application of sustainable practices. Those involved in the Napa Green program take that commitment a step further,” says Dave Whitmer, former Napa County Agricultural Commissioner and Napa Valley Grapegrowers Board member.

The number of Napa Green Certified Wineries has increased from 37 in 2015 to nearly 90 in 2020, with dozens more wineries enrolled and actively working toward certification. Forty percent of all of the certified sustainable wineries in California are here in Napa County. These wineries implement more than 100 green business best practices to improve energy and water efficiency, prevent waste, take climate action, and engage employees along the path of sustainability.

“Napa Green is one of only four sustainable winegrowing programs nationwide providing the opportunity for comprehensive soil to bottle certification,” says Anna Brittain, Executive Director of Napa Green. “While sustainable agriculture is visible and recognized, the opportunities to improve resource efficiency and engage employees and guests in the winery are equally valuable. More than 50 of our members have been comprehensively certified in both the vineyard and winery.”

As one of the world’s premier winegrowing regions, the sustainability and environmental leadership of the Napa County wine industry has waves of impact in the beverage sector and beyond. Given the threats posed by global climate change, Napa Green has a mission to increase its impact on climate action in Napa County and the broader agriculture, wine and hospitality industries.

Fish Friendly Farming certified the first Napa Green Land property in 2004. Over the past 16-years, the Napa Valley Vintners, community partners and certification programs have worked to help growers meet and exceed environmental compliance. Now the Napa Green Executive team and its Board of Directors have decided that Napa Green Land should evolve to a distinct climate action and environmental stewardship certification program.

Environmental compliance will remain the foundation of this next level certification while cultivating and supporting growers interested in having a more profound impact on caring for nature. The focus of the certification will be implementing carbon-farming practices to reduce emissions and store more carbon in the soil, caring for employees and community, as well as recognizing those growers already going above and beyond.

Napa Green Land will continue to recognize growers with validated environmental compliance and certified Farm Plans through 2021, and growers participating in the next iteration of the Napa Green Land program will have an additional 1-2 growing seasons to implement the new standards.

Ryan Klobas, CEO of the Napa County Farm Bureau, notes, “Napa Valley growers have shown time and again that they continue to be excellent stewards of our land and natural resources and take their commitment to the environment seriously. Those involved in Napa Green proudly represent that long tradition of leadership.”

The commitment of the Napa Green community is part of what makes Napa County such a unique and beautiful place to live and to visit. Napa Green will continue to work with growers and vintners to grow the impact and resonance of sustainable winegrowing certification, particularly as the industry works to recover from the economic losses of the COVID-19 crisis.

About Napa Green

Napa Green serves as a catalyst and facilitator to grow certified sustainable, responsible businesses committed to environmental stewardship and climate action in Napa County. The Napa Green Land and Winery programs offer the opportunity for comprehensive third-party certification of rigorous soil to bottle standards for sustainable winemaking and grape growing. Napa Green members protect and restore the Napa River watershed, save energy and water, reduce waste and carbon footprint, and commit to being conscientious employers and good neighbors. Learn more at NapaGreen.org.

A live check in with @abrittain & @reyeswine.mw!
15 1
🌿 Did you know that less than 3% of philanthropic donations go to environmental work? 

Please consider donating to Napa Green this giving season with one of several ways at any level! 

Head to the link in our bio for details!
37 1
With gratitude and joy, we wish you a beautiful day & start to the holiday season from all of us at Team Green! 

- Ben, Meghan, Anna, Marissa, Sierra & Megan
75 1
‘If not here, where? If not now, when?’ 

“The onus is on us as a world class wine growing region to be leaders in sustainability & climate action.” 

- Executive Director of Napa Green, Anna Brittain
29 1
It’s been a big week at Napa Green and we want to take a moment to raise a glass to salute you all. 

We are overjoyed to see so much support and invigorated interest in our mission towards sustainable practices and regenerative agriculture in the wine industry. 

We have many more details, paired with educational & financial resources that are already up and rolling on our website. We will continue to share them all, one by one and in great detail here on socials as well. 

For now please plan on joining us at our upcoming Town Hall meeting on Dec 7th at @stsupery. You can find more details at napagreen.org. 

Cheers and Happy Friday Napa Valley. We are so proud to be a part of this amazing community!
111 11
⚠️ Important Announcement 

Napa Green becomes the first sustainable wine growing certification to require the phaseout of Round Up. 

Please find the link in our bio for the full press release and full suite of info & grower resources. 

Join us on December 7th for our Napa Green Town Hall at @stsupery.
157 30
Don’t miss the awe-inspiring @nikki_silvestri at @dominusestatewinery on Nov 30th!
19 1
You’re invited to join us for a very special day at @dominusestatewinery on November 30th. 

We’ll be briefly interviewing our speaker @nikki_silvestri right here on Instagram today at 2:00pm PST to hear more about what to expect at this event. See you then.
40 2
Curious to learn more? Join us at @dominusestatewinery on November 30th for a rare event and luncheon. Link in bio for details.
50 1
GREEN is the new black this season!! 

Head to the link in our bio now and get your shirts, help a good cause and be an honorary part of Team Green this season! 💚
87 9
Let’s hear it for our Executive Director of Napa Green, the incomparable Anna Brittain for being named a 2023 Wine Industry Leader by @winebusinessmonthly!! 

In their Sustainability Stewards section (which we love to see) we find Anna named in good company with inspired fellow leaders! 

Head to our stories or the link in our bio for free access to the full November issue. 

Cheers to the great work of our visionary Director Anna Brittain!!
97 8
Drink Green this Halloween! 💚
36 1
Sierra is our Soil & Climate Specialist at Napa Green and her ask this year is that everyone consider donating to our small but mighty Team Green for Giving Season! 

Here is more from @regenwithsierra: 

“🎃 Happy Halloween Eve everyone! Today is my birthday, and I would be beyond thrilled if you would consider a donation to @napagreen to support a nonprofit focused on climate action in the wine industry 🍷🍾

@napagreen has the leading set of standards for sustainable practices, from soil to bottle. I am most proud of the work we do with winegrape growers to adopt regenerative agricultural practices in their vineyards. 

Please consider supporting us in our mission!  Click the link in bio for more! “
63 6
Thank you for having us @visitnapavalley! We had a great time talking to visitors about the many sustainability practices our Napa Green wineries and vineyards employ! 

Stop into the Visit Napa Valley Visitor Center in Napa to learn more!
76 2