Calculating the return on sustainability investment for Jackson Family Wines.

Healthy soil from regenerative farming practices at Jackson Family Wines

Although many companies are setting strategic goals to reduce their carbon footprint and adopt more sustainable measures, very few have yet been able to achieve a positive return on investment (ROI) with this type of endeavor. However, Jackson Family Wines, the ninth largest winery in the U.S., producing more than 6 million boxes of wine annually and with operations in 8 countries, recently unveiled its return on investment in sustainability.

In a virtual interview, Katie Jackson, second-generation founder and senior vice president of corporate social responsibility at Jackson Family Wines, shared, "Since 2015, we''have invested more than $19 million in our sustainability programs and infrastructure throughout our winery...' These investments have saved us more than $26 million through renewable energy and efficiency improvements, reducing the weight of our glass bottles and more, totaling nearly $4 million in return on investment. "

With Jackson Family Wines owning more than 40 different wineries around the world, including the well-known Kendall-Jackson, La Crema and Cambria brands, as well as collectible brands like Verité, La Jota and Mt. Brave, which range in price from $100 to $450 per bottle, how did they do it? "

Part of the answer lies in the philosophy of founder Jess''Jackson (Kathy Jackson's father), whose favorite slogan was, "Take care of the earth and it will take care of you. "

Another important piece has to do with their initiative called "Rooted for Good," which describes the four core principles of their sustainability strategy.

Jackson Family Wines (JFW) launched their "Rooted for Good" initiative in 2021 with the goal of cutting their carbon footprint in half by 2030 and becoming a climate positive business by 2050.

With headquarters in Sonoma County, JFW was one of the first wineries in California to pursue sustainability certification for both their vineyards and winemaking processes, beginning in the mid-2000s. By 2015, they had already implemented many energy-saving initiatives that allowed''gas - Much of JFW's positive return on investment has come from investments and savings on solar panels and reducing the weight of glass wine bottles. JFW has the largest solar power plant of any wine corporation in the US, has solar panels installed on the roofs of many of their wineries, and utilizes other sources of renewable energy such as wind turbines and electric vehicles. As a result, over 30% of their energy comes from renewable sources, which has resulted in a savings of about $12 million dollars to date and is equivalent to taking 1,033 cars off the road each year.

With the weight of wine bottles and packaging accounting for 24.4% of the carbon footprint and in''Combined with a product transportation rate of 38.9% (see chart below), JFW began efforts to reduce wine bottle weight; so far they have achieved a 5% weight reduction for 4 wine brands and a 2-3% reduction in emissions. These efforts have saved them an estimated amount of about $6.5 million dollars.

In 2021, JFW also co-founded the International Wineries for Climate Action (ICWA), an international association with the Torres family in Spain. The goal of this association is to help other global wineries develop a plan and strategies to decarbonize the wine sector as soon as possible.

"One of the keys to our success will be continued collaboration with organizations such as International Wineries for Climate Action, ... (and) collaboration with leading''experts, scientists and universities, and with our fellow winemakers to realize innovative solutions to these challenges,' said Kathy Jackson.

JFW is already certified organic for all of their Napa Valley vineyards, and their other subsidiary vineyards are certified sustainable.

Other savings and financial benefits from JFW's sustainable initiatives include offsets, credits for the low carbon fuel standard, and assistance to California industry. Together, they have totaled $26 million in savings to date.

What's up''next for this wine giant? The answer seems to be continued global expansion, as well as a relentless pursuit of their sustainable goals for 2030 and 2050.

Barbara Banks, chairman and owner of Jackson Family Wines (and mother of Kathy Jackson), recently noted on NBC news, "Our newest project is to produce sparkling wine in the UK, so we bought a small area. We're planting grapes and we're going to make pinot noir, chardonnay and sparkling wines. "

Bearing in mind that another effect of climate change is the possibility of growing vineyards in places where it was previously too cold to grow high quality wine, such as the UK, it seems that JFW is tackling the issue of climate change with extreme vigor'.