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GRAPE GRO WING Mark and the Lodi growers felt that what they were learning from the BIFS project was so valuable that LWWC funded it for another seven years. A model in print In 1998, we realized that in order to help all LWWC growers learn about the sustainable farming approach, it was necessary to do more than the BIFS program. I discovered a Wisconsin group called Farm*A*Syst, which was working with grower groups in the United States, Canada and Australia to develop practice-based self-assessments of farming practices. The prin- ciples were based on the Environmental Management Systems (EMS) model, which entails developing a tool for assessing the farming operation, using the assessment to identify strengths and weaknesses, creating an action plan to address areas of weak- ness, implementing these plans and then reassessing the farm in the future to see if improvements have been made. This is called the cycle of continuous improvement. Mark immediately saw the value in this approach, and we put together a leadership team to develop the program. Once again, Mark's vision and management style provided the leadership team and me with the freedom to be creative and proactive. Some growers expressed a valid concern that by putting togeth- er the self-assessment, regulators and/or wineries would use it to their detriment. However, Mark and the visionary growers on the team helped everyone accept this concern and move on. The result was the publication in late 1999 of the "Lodi Winegrower's Work- book: A Self-Assessment of Integrated Farming Practices." The impact of the workbook's publication was immediate. By the middle of 2001, more than 265 Lodi winegrape growers Mark Chandler has resigned from the Lodi-Woodbridge Winegrape Commission, where he has served as executive director since 1991. (who together managed more than 60,000 acres) had done the self-assessment, and their results were compiled anonymously in a computer database so LWWC could learn from the results. The impact outside California Crush District No. 11 was also evident. The "Lodi Winegrower's Workbook" was used as the model for other self-assessment workbooks in Arkansas, California, Michi- gan, Missouri and New York. Monthly analysis on: u Flash site wine sales u Direct-to-Consumer channel u Off-premise wine sales u Winery job index WinesVinesDATA WWW.WINESANDVINES.COM 90 Wines & Vines MAY 2012 Gaining notoriety One of the primary objectives of LWWC is to promote the region, and Mark excelled in this endeavor. In 2004, after the Lodi work- book had been in use for a while, some of the group's progressive growers wondered if developing a sustainable certification pro- gram would add value to the region's winegrapes by enabling win- eries to put an eco label on their bottles. Once again, Mark's lead- ership helped the growers realize that while all Lodi growers may not want or be able to participate in the certification program, the philosophy of "a rising tide raises all ships" would provide a great promotional opportunity for the region, and the Lodi Rules for Sustainable Winegrowing Certification Program was launched in early 2005. The grower value proposition for certification of winegrapes has been realized through several wineries paying a bonus for Lodi Rules-certified grapes. The Lodi Rules program now boasts more than 70 growers, 24,000 acres of certified vine- yards (some outside Lodi) and many wineries using the program's logo on their labels. Mark has now left the Lodi Winegrape Commission, ending an era of hard work and great accomplishments. His legacy will continue through the programs that were put in place dur- ing his tenure. Dr. Cliff Ohmart serves as vice president of professional services for SureHarvest. He is the author of "View from the Vineyard: A practical guide to sustainable winegrape growing," published by the Wine Appre- ciation Guild. Previously he served as research/IPM director at the Lodi- Woodbridge Winegrape Commission. He has been writing about sustain- able winegrowing issues for Wines & Vines since 1998.