Author: Anne Jones – Director of Regenerative Viticulture Foundation
As buyers around the world, and increasingly in Asia, question the credibility of wine producers’ sustainability claims, regenerative viticulture — which aims to restore degraded systems and improve long-term resilience — holds many of the answers.
Wine has long communicated its sustainability through claims such as organic, natural, green or responsible. These terms have shaped perception. But as markets mature, buyers are asking more precise questions, reflecting an understanding that sustainability sits across the full value chain, from agriculture and production to packaging and distribution. In Asia, that transition is happening quickly.
Across Asia’s premium wine markets, sustainability is becoming part of how wines are selected, assessed and increasingly de-risked. Importers, hospitality groups and premium retailers no longer want to know whether a producer is sustainable, but whether those claims are credible, can be demonstrated, measured and trusted. In this context, regenerative viticulture is gaining ground, not as a trend but as part of a broader sustainability framework aligned with a fundamental commercial need: resilience.
This is not only about ideology. It is about the continuity of supply, the credibility of claims and confidence in long-term value. Buyers in premium retail, distribution and hospitality operate within structured procurement environments and are accountable not just for what they buy, but for how those decisions stand up to scrutin.
Credit: © RVF
Sustainability under scrutiny
In markets such as Hong Kong and Macau, where wine is embedded in luxury hospitality, and in South Korea and Taiwan, where it is positioned as a lifestyle product, sustainability claims are expected to be clear, defensible and aligned with broader Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) frameworks. Wine is positioned firmly at the premium end in many of these markets, and credibility matters. Buyers are building portfolios that reflect trust as well as quality, and vague claims carry reputational risk.
A significant proportion of wine also flows through structured channels such as hotel groups, fine dining and premium retail. These are governed by procurement frameworks and increasingly by ESG criteria. Sustainability, therefore, becomes a parameter that needs to be documented and verified.
Large regional retailers are already embedding this into supplier expectations. DFI Retail Group, operating more than 11,000 outlets across 13 Asian markets, has science-based climate targets and is actively working with suppliers on emissions and agricultural practices, including regenerative farming initiatives. AEON Group has also formalised ESG targets aligned with global standards and engages suppliers through structured sustainability frameworks. McKinsey analysis following COP26 highlights that Asian grocers are under increasing pressure from consumers, investors and regulators, and that sustainability initiatives can directly influence cost, margin and growth while reshaping supplier relationships. It also shows acceleration of consumer demand in Asian markets.
Credit: © DFI
In India, Malaysia and China, for example, more than 8 in 10 consumers (88%, 85% and 85%, respectively) said they had made changes in the past few years to the products and services they bought or used, specifically out of concern for climate change. That is compared to 51% in Australia, Japan and South Korea, 56% in the United States, and 70% in France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom.
Import dependency adds a further dimension. Markets such as Taiwan and South Korea rely overwhelmingly on imported wine, with South Korea importing over 95% of its wine. Climate volatility in producing regions, therefore, translates directly into supply risk. Erratic weather, water scarcity and soil degradation can affect availability, consistency and pricing. From a buyer’s perspective, understanding how a vineyard is managed becomes a proxy for understanding how resilient that supply might be.
As sustainability becomes more prominent, scrutiny is increasing. Rapid market education has created an environment where generic claims risk being dismissed, while clear, measurable indicators build trust. The move towards proof is therefore as much about credibility as it is about data.
An important distinction
Organic certification has played an important role in defining sustainable agriculture, but it is a rules-based system that focuses on a narrow set of inputs.
Regenerative viticulture approaches the question differently, by focusing on outcomes within the vineyard system. It prioritises soil health, biodiversity and ecosystem function, aiming not just to reduce harm but to restore degraded systems and improve long-term resilience. This distinction matters. Organic farming can prevent further degradation, while regenerative approaches aim to reverse it through whole-system change.
For buyers, this offers a more useful lens. Regenerative practices provide insight into how a vineyard is performing over time, including its capacity to retain water, withstand climatic stress and maintain consistent quality. There is also increasing interest in the potential link between regenerative practices and wine quality, with early trials and comparative tastings beginning to explore this relationship.
If the shift is towards evidence, the question becomes what that evidence looks like. In practice, buyers are looking for a small number of clear indicators that can be understood and compared, even within the variability of agricultural systems. Soil health sits at the centre.
Measures such as soil organic matter and permanent soil cover provide insight into biological activity and structure. Research in Mediterranean vineyards shows that regenerative systems can contain 2.3 to 3.4 times more soil carbon than conventional systems, indicating improved soil function and resilience. Water management is closely linked. Practices such as cover crops and reduced tillage improve infiltration and reduce runoff, enhancing a vineyard’s ability to cope with both drought and heavy rainfall. Higher soil organic matter is directly associated with greater water-holding capacity.
Biodiversity is also functional. Regenerative vineyards have been shown to support significantly higher levels of soil life – including up to 26 times more protists, three times more nematodes and around 30 times more microarthropods – than intensive systems. This contributes to natural pest regulation and system stability.
Carbon is emerging as a key metric. Regenerative practices can increase soil organic carbon and contribute to climate mitigation, although measurement methodologies remain an evolving area. The Greenhouse Gas Protocol has recently introduced Land Sector Removals Standards to support consistent accounting of carbon sequestration in soils and perennial crops. This is likely to become increasingly important as retailers and distributors push suppliers to measure and manage emissions across the value chain in order to control their own Scope 3 exposure (especially if and when carbon incentives and fines are introduced).
Communicating to boost credibility
Finally, proof depends on communication. Buyers require information that is clear, consistent and, where possible, verifiable. This may include vineyard-level data, sustainability reporting or participation in recognised initiatives such as the International Wineries for Climate Action. The emphasis is on transparency rather than perfection. As these indicators become more widely understood, they are beginning to influence purchasing behaviour. Importers and distributors are incorporating sustainability into supplier assessments alongside quality, price and brand positioning. Retailers are also using sustainability as part of their communication with consumers, reinforcing its role as both a selling point and a selection criterion.
For producers, the implications are practical. Regenerative viticulture does not require an immediate full-scale transition, but it does require a shift from static certification towards measurement and continuous improvement. Tracking a small number of core indicators and communicating progress clearly can strengthen both market access and brand credibility.
Saving wine’s legacy
Climate change is reshaping the foundations of wine production. Some projections suggest that a large proportion of traditional wine regions could become less viable over the coming century due to shifting climate conditions, reinforcing the importance of adaptive and resilient vineyard systems. Against this backdrop, resilience is becoming central to how wine is evaluated.
In Asia’s premium markets, this is reflected in the move from narratives and intentions towards evidence and measurable performance. Regenerative viticulture aligns with this shift by offering resilience and ecological stability, leading to being a more reliable and responsible long-term commercial partner.
For buyers, this provides a clearer basis for assessing continuity of supply and credibility. For producers, it offers a pathway to remain competitive in markets where expectations are rising. For everyone, it is clear that with food systems being responsible for two-thirds of global emissions, the wine industry is at the epicentre of retail pressure to protect its supply chains and mitigate climate impacts.
This is an opportunity to be seized with both hands, in order to continue the legacy of the wine industry and the land it relies upon. The Asian market should not be underestimated in its scale and power to drive that transition.
About Anne Jones
Anne Jones is a wine industry sustainability consultant, with Limestone & Jones. She is a Director of the Regenerative Viticulture Foundation and also consults with WineGB and Sustainability in Drinks, along with other clients such as the Wine Society, Chapel Down, Gusbourne and Levy’s (Compass Group). www.regenerativeviticulture.org
