Will consumers buy more wine if it’s produced in an environmentally friendly way? That is the focus of a new publication Exploring Eco Labeling for California Winegrapes: A Working Conference, proceedings from a national conference where winegrape growers, winery representatives, consumers, researchers, pest control advisers and retailers made presentations on the issue.

“ ‘Eco labeling’ offers consumers a choice, and growers a potential marketplace advantage for using environmentally sound growing practices,” says Jenny Broome, plant pathologist and associate director of SAREP, which co-sponsored the Sacramento conference.

Broome, the principal editor of the publication, says articles in the proceedings draw upon lessons learned in eco labeling projects from around the country. Topics include information on retail programs that support eco labels, local and regional marketing programs, results of a survey of California wineries and their interest in eco labeling, lessons learned from the organic experience, and resource lists that include organizations with labeling programs.

One of the presentations included is from an integrated vineyard farming system developed by the Central Coast Vineyard Team, of which Broome is a member. “The team’s Positive Points System is an example of a farming system that could be the basis of an eco label for California winegrape growers,” she said.

The Lodi Woodbridge Winegrape Commission (LWWC) received funding for the event from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; the conference and proceedings were also co-sponsored by the California Association of Winegrape Growers, the LWWC, and the Robert Mondavi Winery. The proceedings are available in printed form at no charge from SAREP, University of California, One Shields Ave., Davis, CA 95616-8716 and on its Web site, http://www.sarep.ucdavis.edu/pubs/.