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46 WINES&VINES January 2017 Viewpoint E very day, it seems the world is trending more and more toward organics. Sales of organic food are skyrocketing. England's Prince Charles announced that's he's joining a new initiative to keep more of the world's carbon in soils through organic farming techniques. And around the globe, organically grown wine is one of the fastest growing categories. So to what extent does the U.S. wine industry factor into this worldwide trend? So far, very little. On the production side, or- ganic wine grapes account for an estimated 5% of total vine- yard acreage worldwide. In France 9% of all vineyards (or 146,000 acres) are organic, while in Alsace, 15% of the vines are certified organic or Biodynamic. In contrast, of the acres planted to vines in Cali- fornia (home to 85% of U.S. wine grapes), just 2.4% are cer- t i f i e d o r g a n i c . And organic wine grape vineyard acreage has been declining slowly in recent years. According to Cali- fornia Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF), the largest certifier, wine grape vineyard acreage has declined 10% during the past four years—from 11,514 acres in 2012 to 10,405 acres in 2015. While some regions are organic hot spots—Mendocino (24%), Napa (7%) and Oregon (7%)— elsewhere, the statistics are much lower. Sonoma and Paso Robles vine- yards are both under 3% organic, while Lodi, the coastal valleys and the Central Valley are lower still. Contrast this with Europe, where both production and consumption of organically grown wines show strong growth. While U.S. production of certified organic wine has declined, U.S. consumption of these products has increased, growing at rates between 10% and 20% per year in volume between 2013 and 2016, according to Nielsen, far above the industry average. Organic wine is still a niche market in the United States, comprising only 1% of wine sold by volume and 2% of wine by value, according to Nielsen, but the data show sustained and rapid growth for both domestic and foreign organically grown wines. In the off-premise channel in 2016, case volume grew 10% for organic wines—nearly five times the average vol- ume growth. On the revenue side, organic wines rose 12%—roughly double the average of all wine. Are American vintners tracking these market signals? Are they interested in getting into the growing organic market? Trends driving growth today and in the future Supermarket wines that are organic are doing well—very well: Bonterra, America's largest organic wine brand (approaching 500,000 cases), had its best year ever in 2016, earning it a coveted Wine Star Award as American Winery of the Year from Wine Enthusiast maga- n PAM STRAYER The Organic Opportunity: Will the U.S. Wine Industry Miss Out? BONTERRA