Winegrowers' 20-page 1/17 propaganda refuted

On last night's KOWS-FM radio program "A Better World IS Possible" the Winegrowers' expensive propaganda was refuted by a wine industry member, a food farmer, an activist in Wine and Water Watch (www.winewaterwatch.org), and neighbors to the sprawling wine industry. As a recently retired college teacher, I would give this "Report" an F-. Most notable is not what is contends, but what it ignores.

If the wine industry could claim being sustainable, following are some of the things it would need to do:

1. Replant the many acres of redwoods, oaks, and other trees that it has cut, thus eliminating their beauty and capacity to store carbon.

2. Take down the fences around their precious grapevines, which destroy habitat for wildlife, which then perish.

3. Stop hoarding water needed by humans and other life forms.

4. Stop using chemicals that kill bees, lead to bee colony collapses, and poison people.

5. According to a recent issue of "Made Local" by GoLocal, 96% of the veggies & fruit sold in Sonoma County are imported from outside the county. Food farming has been replaced by alcohol farming in Sonoma County, thus reducing our diversity and threatening our food security.

This market-driven screed contends that the winegrowers are "socially responsible in how they treat their employees, neighbors, and our community." Yet even the pro-wine industry PD had to rank the growing backlash against the wine industry as one of the top ten stories of 2015. (More information at www.preserveruralsonomacounty.org).

These wine barons live in a bubble that will soon burst. Wine is a notorious boom-and-bust monocrop. The last bust was in 2008. The next one is likely to be soon.

Some small wineries reamain. However, the trend is toward further consolidation. For documentation of this claim, one could do a google search and find the booklet "The Myth of the Family Winery: Global Corporations Behind California Wine."

Among those on the long "Sustainability Honor Roll" is Dairyman Vineyard, owned by Joe Wagner of the Napa Wagner family. Along with Paul Hobbs, also of Napa County, they are leading the Napafication of Sonoma County. The Wagners settled for $1 million dollars with Napa County for bottling 20 times more wine than they were permitted to do. The Watertrough Childrens Alliance (WCA) observed Paul Hobbs breaking environmental laws and turned him in. Faced with millions of dollars in fines, he settled for a mere $100,000 with Sonoma County. Break the rules and then pay a paltry fine.

For more documentation on these issues, attend a Jan. 28, Thur., 6 p.m. WCA/Sierra Club event on the dangers of the use of the weedkiller Roundup, which most winegrowers use. It will be moderated by Sebastopol Mayor Sarah Glade Gurney and include a dinner. Register at WCARoundUpEvent.BrownPaperTickets.com or just show up.

I had the good fortune to listen to your radio show, A Better World IS Possible last night and really appreciate the important information you and your informed guests discussed about the impact of the Wine Industry on our community.

Thank you too, for the clear articulation of what sustainability is. From my perspective, it seems that the Wine Industry has latched onto and overused this most popular buzz word with little or no understanding of the depth and breadth of its meaning.

Glad that there are people out there like you and your guests helping us to stay informed and educating us along the way.

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Posted in reply to the post by Shepherd:

On last night's KOWS-FM radio program "A Better World IS Possible" the Winegrowers' expensive propaganda was refuted by a wine industry member...

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Posted in reply to the post by Shepherd:

If the wine industry could claim being sustainable...

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Shepherd:

According to SCR 94 authored by Noreen Evans [whom I know that you support], the wine industry is sustainable. Below is the text from Evans' bill designating April 2014 as “California Wines: Down to Earth” month, timed to Earth Day.

Interestingly enough, the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance applauded in Evans' bill is also mentioned two times in the winegrowers' 20 page 1/17 propaganda insert published by the Press Democrat.

Sustainable food for thought:

Michael.

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BILL TEXT

WHEREAS, Sustainability is a vital part of the long-term future of California wine, which contributes an estimated $61.5 billion in annual economic impact to California’s economy; and

WHEREAS, The Wine Institute and the California Association of Winegrape Growers created the California Code of Sustainable Winegrowing Workbook more than a decade ago, with the third edition released in January 2013, and it has since been used by vineyards and wineries representing three quarters of California’s winegrape acreage and production to self-assess operations; and

WHEREAS, The Sustainable Winegrowing Program, now managed by the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance, is comprised of more than 200 best practices for vineyards and wineries that benefit the environment, employees, neighbors, and high-quality wine; and

WHEREAS, Other state and regional sustainability programs, such as Lodi Rules, Sustainability in Practice (SIP), Napa Green, Fish Friendly Farming, the California Green Business Program, and others, all play an important role in the California wine communities’ efforts to grow grapes and produce wine in a manner that is environmentally sound, economically feasible, and socially equitable; and

WHEREAS, Growing participation in sustainable organic, and biodynamic, certification programs further conveys California vintners’ and growers’ adherence to high standards, desire for transparency, and dedication to continuous improvement; and

WHEREAS, California’s wine community conserves water, energy, and other natural resources, protects habitat, employee welfare, and air, water, and soil quality, and promotes the use of natural pest management and alternative energy and fuels; and

WHEREAS, California’s 3,800 wineries and 4,600 winegrape growers are primarily family businesses, with a long-term commitment to the health and vitality of their communities, and to preserving the land for future generations; and

WHEREAS, California’s winegrape growers and vintners commitment to sustainability has been documented in a newly published book, Down to Earth, A Seasonable Tour of Sustainable Winegrowing in California; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly thereof concurring, That the Legislature proclaims April 2014 as the time to celebrate the sustainable leadership of California wineries and winegrape growers with the theme, “California Wines: Down to Earth” month, timed to Earth Day on April 22; and be it further

Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.

Thanks, Michael, for this helpful research. I support Noreen running, as I support farmer Lynda Hopkins, who has also taken out papers. We should make the wine industry an important campaign issue in all three of the supervisors races, and see how the candidates respond. I would welcome your voice on Waccobb.net and elsewhere as this matter evolves.