Campaign underway for more organic vineyards

Organic Winegrowers New Zealand (OWNZ) are driving a campaign to have 20 per cent of vineyards certified organic by 2020.

OWNZ is a 140-member national association led by growers promoting organic production.

Last year, OWNZ signed a memorandum of understanding with New Zealand Wine Growers (NZW) to work towards organic goals.

"By 2020, even if we only achieve 20 per cent of the vinelands in our country as being certified organic and biodynamic, it will be a giant step towards enforcing our very precious environmental image to wine connoisseurs all over the world," OWNZ chairman James Millton said.

The amount of vineyard land in New Zealand under organic certification has tripled in the past three years and at the moment 4.5 per cent of all vineyard land is certified organic, according to NZW.

No synthetic chemical fertilisers, pesticides or herbicides are permitted in organic vineyards.

Instead, organic producers must work with ecological processes, biodiversity, and naturally derived products.

- NZPA