Familia Martínez Zabala

Bodegas Faustino and Marqués de Vitoria, the first Riojan wineries to achieve the Sustainable Wineries for Climate Protection (SWfCP) certification

Sustainable Wineries for Climate Protection SWFCP

Bodegas Faustino and Bodegas Marqués de Vitoria are the first wineries in the DOCa Rioja wine-growing region to be awarded this novel guarantee of integral sustainability.

SWfCP is the world's first and only environmental sustainability certificate specifically for wineries and it was created by the Spanish Wine Federation (Federación Española del Vino – FEV), focusing on four main aspects – environmental, social, economic and governance – which make it a true international benchmark in the world of wine.

The Martínez Zabala family is the first wine-growing company in Rioja – through its Bodegas Faustino and Bodegas Marqués de Vitoria wineries – to be awarded the new Sustainable Wineries for Climate Protection (SWfCP) certification, which details the criteria that wineries of the present and the future must meet in terms of sustainability. These criteria centre around four elements that are of utmost importance and are supported by the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals, which provide companies and people with a road map for creating a more sustainable world. 

These four criteria are: Environment (water and waste management, energy efficiency, GHG emissions, soil and biodiversity); society (health and safety of consumers, works and providers and of the local territory and culture); economy (efficiency and resilience) and governance (sustainability management, ethical behaviour and stakeholder relations).

SWfCP is the first and only certification specifically designed for the wine sector regarding environmental sustainability and its main goal is to foster continuous improvement among wine-producing companies, outlining the criteria that a winery must meet in order to be considered sustainable and providing steps for achieving this, through rigorous work and measurable actions.

This feat, which is recognised throughout the Spanish and international distribution sector, helps the Martínez Zabala family lead its wineries towards attaining optimal quality, using continuous improvement to improve the efficiency of all their processes in both the medium and long term.

Committed to the environment and the socio-economic surroundings

Sustainability is one of the Martínez Zabala family's top priorities, forming a fundamental part of its wineries and vineyards since the very beginning and playing an essential role in its management model. Throughout its history, the company has been involved in countless innovative initiatives with which it adapts to climate change, all while protecting and respecting biodiversity, by developing new processes that boast a reduced carbon footprint and thus constantly enhancing the high quality of its top-of-the-range wines, ensuring that it leaves only a positive impact on its natural and socio-economic surroundings.

The wine-producing company continues to develop innovations and implement control systems that help allay the consequences of climate change on its wines and vineyards, rolling out new tools that improve the standard of its products and keep the effects of global warming at bay, always keeping one eye on the future.

Bioprotection

As part of its efforts to protect and conserve its natural surroundings and the biodiversity it is home to, the Martínez Zabala family has opted for organic pesticides over chemical ones to treat illnesses in its vineyards, thus doing away with the negative influence that the latter have on human, animal and plant life. 

The Martínez Zabala family is also acutely aware of the influence that nature has on its vineyards, and as such it has implemented incredibly efficient measures such as respecting its plots’ natural boundaries, installing nest boxes for birds and bats, building “insect hotels” and installing green roofs to prevent soil erosion and water loss, among many others.

All of these initiatives have been key to Bodegas Faustino and Bodegas Marqués de Vitoria obtaining the new SWfCP certification, proof of their unwavering commitment to the environment and an internationally recognised seal of approval for two pioneering wineries that have their gazes firmly set on the future.