Montana winery commits to green packaging

Tony Hoksbergen, viticulture and wineries general manager at Montana, highlighted the use of natural fertilizers, a large scale planting project and a commitment to a reduction in landfill as methods of sustainability.

He said: "Our ambition is to get to 100% organic management and we are currently running a series of pilots in our vineyards to work towards achieving this.

"The winery has planted over 2,000 natives in Marlborough every year for the past seven years as well as 6,000 in Waipara over the same period. Some 5,500 additional plants are scheduled to be planted during the course of this year."

Montana has identified packaging as a crucial area where it can reduce its carbon footprint and has stopped using dividers in cases for its Classic' wine range, which reduces raw material packaging by 20% overall.

Jeff Clarke, Montana chief winemaker, said the company's commitment to greener packaging was "an ongoing project".

"This includes everything from packaging design, material selection, weight and recyclability. As happy as we are with our successes so far, we are still investigating lots of further ways in which we can improve," he concluded.