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‘When In Rome’ becomes first UK wine brand to reveal its climate footprint

15 October 2021 By Jessica Mason

Sustainable wine company When in Rome has become the first wine brand in the UK to add a climate footprint label onto its packaging.

The Gloucester-based company has partnered with CarbonCloud to verify its wine brand’s carbon footprint and bring more transparency to its climate impact.

The initiative involves three of the brand’s bag-in-box wines having been analysed for greenhouse gas emissions at every stage of the production (cradle-to-shelf), from agriculture to distribution, right up until the point the product is placed on the shelf.

When in Rome wine is available in eco-friendly packaging formats such as bag-in-box, cans, and recycled polyethylene terephthalate bottles.

When in Rome began its transparency journey with three of its bag-in-box wines: Nero d’Avola, Grillo Organic Sicilia and Sauvignon Bianco.

The first wine to be assessed, the Sauvignon Bianco, yielded a climate footprint of 0.69 kg CO2e/kg. When comparing this with the same wine packaged in a single-use glass bottle, a score of 1.18 kg CO2e/kg was produced, showing a reduction of 41% in carbon production compared to the less eco-friendly alternative.

The calculations for the Nero d’Avola and Grillo Organic Sicilia were calculated shortly after and saw a climate footprint of 0.88 kg CO2e/kg.

Rob Malin, CEO of When in Rome said: “This is a great start of our commitment to radical transparency on the climate impact of our business activities – but it is only the beginning. Going forward, we will work with our producers as well as CarbonCloud to minimise the climate footprint of all of our products.”

Beatrice Tobin of CarbonCloud added: “When in Rome unbox a true Italian wine experience and a noble yet raw commitment to consumer and industry transparency. We are cheering When in Rome on joining the climate footprint movement and setting the example in the UK wine market.”

When In Rome bag-in-box wines, which are available to buy in the UK from Waitrose stores, recently teamed up with This Morning show presenter Philip Schofield to create his own range of wines.

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