Farming practices geared to support the ecological, environmental and economic sustainability of the farm. A holistic thought process protects the vitality of that land for our kids’ kids and beyond…

Multiple certifying agencies for sustainable farming include allowing the use of Round-Up (a product from Monsanto). Microbial vitality and life force energy of the soil and water are not enhanced in any way, shape or form by the use of this synthetic compound.

Does that fit with your definition of sustainably farmed? Should it? What does sustainable mean to you?

This is part of the definition I found on Wikipedia:

“Sustainability is the capacity to endure. In ecology, the word describes how biological systems remain diverse and productive over time. Long-lived and healthy wetlands and forests are examples of sustainable biological systems. For humans, sustainability is the potential for long-term maintenance of well-being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions.”

Sustainable is a buzzword nearly everyone is using with a lot of different definitions being thrown around.

ConsciousWine’s second principle is Sustainably Farmed, meaning the whole farm (and all the life on it, including the farmer’s) is supported through the detailed actions that happen day by day within the farm. Use of synthetic chemicals supports reliance on synthetic chemicals. Practices like biodiversity, and animals on the farm (including diverse microbes), support natural predatory cycles and a sustainable approach to farming.

Before agriculture was on that land, the natural diversity present kept the immune system of that place vital and supportive of everything that lived there. Once the land was cleared, how does the farmer keep the immune system strong and vital?

How about this: when a problem shows up, there’s a pause and consideration to the effects on the whole.

Grgich Hills Winery in Napa Valley was deciding how to handle a serious problem in their vineyards during the 2010 season, in regards to the European Grape Vine Moth. Their philosophy was that a biological problem had a biological answer. While many other wineries sprayed chemicals, including some with various sustainability certifications on their wine labels, Grgich Hills proceeded to place, in the vineyards, the larvae of a predatory wasp that would take care of the moth problem.

That’s what we’re looking for in regards to the second principle of ConsciousWine, Sustainably Farmed.

Practices of ConsciousWineries that specifically support this principle include animals on the farm, biodiversity, family farmed, polyculture and regenerative farming practices.