Eugenio Pomarici

Sustainability has become a key issue in the wine sector, raising questions about its compatibility with firms' economic performance. Despite growing attention to environmental and social practices, evidence on their economic implications remains fragmented. Building on the existing literature, this paper aims to clarify whether, and to what extent, sustainability practices translate into economic sustainability and competitive advantage for wine firms. A systematic literature review was conducted following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines, analyzing 106 peer‐reviewed studies retrieved from Scopus and Web of Science. Drawing on a competitive advantage framework, the review examines the economic effects of sustainability across three dimensions: production performance, market performance, and overall economic outcomes. The analysis integrates firm‐level evidence with demand‐side studies, including consumers' willingness to pay for sustainability attributes. The results reveal heterogeneous evidence regarding the association between sustainability and economic performance. Resource‐efficient practices often support cost reductions, while capital‐intensive investments may negatively affect short‐term profitability. On the market side, sustainability can enhance differentiation and reputation, although price premiums are generally moderate and confined to specific consumer segments. Overall, economic benefits tend to emerge primarily in the medium to long term when sustainability is strategically integrated into firms' operations and market positioning.

The growing relevance of No- and Low-alcohol (NoLo) wines, largely produced through post-fermentation dealcoholization techniques, is reshaping the wine sector, driven by evolving consumer preferences and climate-related increases in grape sugar content. Although European Union (EU) legislation permits partial dealcoholization for Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) wines, national approaches differ, with Italy maintaining a cautious stance. This study explores wine experts’ perspectives on introducing partial dealcoholization into Italian PDO and PGI specifications through a two-round Delphi survey. It examines levels of acceptance, key conditions, and perceived barriers to its inclusion in official production regulations. Results show broad acceptance for PGI wines, while PDO wines, especially higher-tier categories, face strong resistance due to concerns about authenticity, sensory identity, and cultural heritage. Experts favor naturally low-alcohol wines achieved through viticultural and oenological practices, but recognize the limits imposed by climate change and grape composition. A flexible, integrated approach is therefore suggested, using partial dealcoholization as a complementary tool when necessary. Findings underline the importance of governance, protection Consortia, and transparent labeling, framing partial dealcoholization as a “bounded innovation” whose legitimacy depends on preserving territorial identity, regulatory coherence, and consumer trust. This exploratory study maps stakeholder positions and offers insights for future research and policy development on integrating NoLo wines into geographical indication systems.

In response to the growing global focus on healthier lifestyles and reduced alcohol consumption, dealcoholized wines, including both No- and Low-alcohol (NoLo) wines, are emerging as a key innovation within the wine industry. However, existing literature reviews remain fragmented, outdated, or limited, lacking an integrated overview of consumer research on NoLo wines. This study addresses this gap by presenting the first comprehensive and up-to-date systematic literature review dedicated specifically to consumer-focused research on NoLo wines. Peer-reviewed studies published up to mid-2025 were retrieved from major academic databases and selected through a methodologically rigorous process based on the PRISMA protocol and the SPICE framework. To explore the conceptual landscape and evolution of this research area, a bibliometric network analysis was conducted using VOSviewer and the Bibliometrix R package, identifying key authors and emerging thematic patterns in the literature. Moreover, the review synthesizes and discusses the literature across 12 interrelated thematic areas (e.g., health considerations, consumer perception, acceptance and preference, perceived quality, motivational factors and barriers, cultural and religious values, overcompensation, sustainability, etc.), thereby providing a state-of-the-art picture. The study concludes by identifying key priorities for future consumer research and advocating for multidisciplinary and cross-cultural approaches. These are essential to help scholars, industry stakeholders, and policymakers deepen understanding, drive innovation, and develop strategies that foster wider consumer acceptance of NoLo wines in this rapidly evolving market.

Amid increasing pressure on sustainability across sectors, the wine industry is also being called to adopt sustainable and responsible practices. However, a potential concern for firms is whether and to what extent sustainability efforts, while beneficial for the environment and society, require some sacrifice on the economic side. Specifically, this study investigates whether adopting a holistic sustainability approach by wine firms leads to economic issues in the short term. We focus on Italian wineries certified under Equalitas certification, a three-pillar certification integrating environmental, social, and economic dimensions, and evaluate their financial performance using a difference-in-differences (DiD) approach. The analysis relies on firm-level economic data from the AIDA database, covering a sample of 631 companies observed over a six-year period from 2018 to 2023. Overall, the results show no statistically significant short-term changes in profitability or liquidity indicators across the entire sample. These findings suggest that, while short-term economic gains are not guaranteed, embarking on a sustainability path does not undermine financial performance and may offer benefits under certain organizational conditions. The study contributes to the literature by providing robust empirical evidence on the economic implications of the adoption holistic sustainability approaches in the wine sector.

This paper investigates wine tourists’ preferences for the attributes of the wine tourism experience (WTEXP) in Italy and Turkey, exploring cross-cultural differences and similarities in two countries with diverse wine tourism development. Data were collected through an online survey of 253 wine consumers, and the Best–Worst Scaling method was employed in both countries to assess the perceived importance of selected WTEXP attributes that influence tourists’ choices. The samples were then segmented using cluster analysis based on key attitudinal scales (e.g., wine involvement), with BWS applied to each segment to further examine visitor preferences. The results show that both Italian and Turkish wine tourists prioritized expert-led tours but differed in other preferences. Italian tourists valued the winery’s aesthetic appeal, while Turkish tourists favored pre-visit informative sessions. Additionally, Italians placed less importance on accompanying events, while Turks considered the reputation of the wine, winery, or wine region the least significant factor. These preferences also varied within the clusters identified in each sample. This research represents the first comparison of consumer preferences in wine tourism between Turkey, a developing market, and Italy, a traditional Old World wine producer, while considering the diversity within each group. The findings provide key insights for wine tourism stakeholders, such as wineries and tourism managers, offering actionable recommendations to tailor their offerings for specific tourist segments to attract a larger number of wine tourists, enhance their experience, and foster sustainable growth of wine tourism.

Il Regolamento (UE) 2024/1143 introduce il principio che la qualità dei prodotti a indicazione geografica non sia monodimensionale perché limitata alla qualità organolettica, ma tetradimensionale: oltre alla qualità organolettica sono rilevanti anche la sostenibilità sociale, economica e ambientale che deve caratterizzare non solo l’attività produttiva, ma anche tutte le attività svolte a sostegno dell’offerta dei prodotti a indicazione geografica.

Il 23 aprile 2024 l’Accademia dei Georgofili e l’Accademia Italiana della Vite e del Vino hanno celebrato il centenario dell’istituzione dell’Office International du Vin (OIV), avvenuta a Parigi il 29 novembre 1924 con la sottoscrizione di un accordo fra Italia, Francia, Spagna, Lussemburgo, Tunisia, Ungheria, Grecia e Portogallo per far fronte alle devastanti conseguenze economiche e sociali prodotte dalla fillossera sul territorio europeo, aggravate dal dramma del primo conflitto mondiale. In questi 100 anni l’OIV ha ampliato il suo raggio di interesse a tutti i prodotti della vite diventando nel 1957 Office International de la Vigne et du Vin e poi Organizzazione Internazionale della Vite e del Vino nel 2001Nel tempo l’OIV ha affrontato tutte le tematiche tecniche, normative e istituzionali di interesse della filiera vitivinicola guadagnandosi il ruolo di Ente di armonizzazione a livello globale. Negli anni, il numero dei paesi membri è progressivamente cresciuto: oggi si contano 50 membri, includendo paesi con interessi nella produzione e/o nel consumo dei prodotti vitivinicoli. Le 1432 risoluzioni approvate dalle assemblee generali dell’OIV rappresentano il riferimento per l’orientamento delle legislazioni vitivinicole nazionali, anche di paesi non membri dell’OIV, nonché per la definizione di accordi commerciali bilaterali. Ciò ha agevolato l’applicazione degli accordi raggiunti in sede di Organizzazione Mondiale per il Commercio per quanto riguarda le barriere tecniche agli scambi (TBT), le barriere sanitarie e fitosanitarie (SPS) e la protezione della proprietà intellettuale (TRIPS) in materia di indicazioni geografiche. A livello europeo, l’UE con il regolamento 1308/2013 art.80 assume l’OIV come riferimento esplicito in materia di norme vitivinicole. Di particolare rilievo sono le risoluzioni che hanno consentito di compilare i Codici internazionali delle pratiche enologiche e dei prodotti utilizzabili in enologia, i compendi dei metodi di analisi, le norme internazionali di etichettatura del vino e delle bevande spiritose di origine vitivinicola, i cataloghi delle varietà di vite, delle indicazioni geografiche e dei programmi di formazione, nonché aggiornamenti statistici sul settore vitivinicolo, linee guida e raccomandazioni.Le risoluzioni dell’OIV sono approvate dai rappresentanti dei governi degli stati membri ma sono preparate dagli esperti che operano in quattro commissioni scientifiche (Viticoltura, Enologia, Economia e diritto, Sicurezza e salute), ciascuna articolata in gruppi di esperti e in due in sottocommissioni (uva non da vino e suoi derivati; metodi di analisi) cui sono affidati temi specifici. Nel tempo migliaia di ricercatori internazionali di università e centri di ricerca hanno avuto modo di confrontarsi con rappresentanti del mondo della produzione, delle professioni e delle amministrazioni, con rigido autocontrollo scientifico dei risultati generati dalle loro conoscenze, garantendo in questo modo sempre l’autorità e l'indipendenza intellettuale e morale dell’OIV.

Despite attention to sustainability growing in the last decade in the wine sector, the rate of association with wine sustainability programs still appears to be limited. This is mainly related to the uncertainty about the economic benefits related to the implementation of sustainable best practices. In this regard, some studies highlighted that the presence of professionals capable of managing the requirements promoted by the standards generally leads to a positive perception of their impact on the economic performances of companies. Therefore, to encourage participation in sustainability programs, the adoption of a collaborative approach to share the skills and knowledge necessary to manage the transition from a conventional organization to a sustainable one seems to be a functional strategy. This paper presents the Prosecco Sustainability Project as a case study to investigate how a structured set of activities must be deployed through a participatory/collaborative approach to significantly improve the level of sustainability of a wide and heterogeneous community of grape and wine producers. The case study highlights that the collaboration between different actors and the guidance from a coordinating figure capable of fostering dialogue and cooperation among the various stakeholders represent key elements to the large-scale deployment of a sustainable management system.

This article explores the issues surrounding the agroecological transition in the European wine industry, focusing on reducing pesticide use, developing organic certification and using genetic research in relation to resistant grape varieties. The study distinguishes between stakeholders from the wine industry, institutions and the agricultural research sector. The findings consistently identify the agroecological transition as a priority, particularly in terms of pesticide reduction. However, variations exist in the views of the surveyed stakeholders. French and Portuguese stakeholders emphasise the role of market and societal pressures as drivers of the transition, while Italian producers do not. Professionals in France and Portugal express doubts about achieving pesticide reduction through changes in practices, while others stress the importance of regulatory constraints. The research also highlights industry challenges such as decreased consumption due to health awareness and the need for social responsibility. Resistant grape varieties are seen as a viable solution, especially for the development of organic production, but market acceptability remains a significant hurdle. The study sheds light on stakeholder perspectives and challenges, thus contributing to a better understanding of priorities in the European wine industry’s pursuit of sustainable practices.