Shared value, real impact: Fontanafredda’s 2024 Sustainability Report highlights the achievement of new, significant milestones — starting with the attainment of the Japanese Agricultural Standard (JAS) organic certification, making the Piedmontese winery one of the first in Italy to reach this goal. The continuous reduction of environmental impact and the expansion of welfare programs for employees and collaborators underscore a vision that places community, quality of work, and innovation at the heart of shared value creation.
167 years after its founding, Fontanafredda continues to build a value-driven and production model based on respect for the land and people — a journey that began in the 1990s and was formalized with the publication of its first Sustainability Report in 2020. With 120 hectares of certified organic vineyards and Italy’s first “Narrative Village,” the historic winery reaffirms its role as a spokesperson for cultural and environmental regeneration. Through its Green Renaissance project, Fontanafredda has reinterpreted its values to anticipate future challenges, promoting a conscious approach to energy, water, and material use — including the transition to more sustainable packaging.
The 2024 Sustainability Report, drafted according to GRI standards and Equalitas certification, has for two years integrated the goals of the UN 2030 Agenda, with particular focus on water resource protection and equitable management.
2024 Sustainability Report: Fontanafredda’s Human and Social Dimension
At the heart of the 2024 Report is the human and social dimension. Fontanafredda has strengthened its welfare policies by introducing a free psychological support service for all employees, aimed at promoting mental and relational well-being. Family-focused programs have been confirmed, including free summer camps for employees’ children, health insurance policies, extra-contractual bonuses, and an annual scholarship for students of the “Umberto I” Enological Institute in Alba, supporting the next generation.
Attention to people also translates into everyday actions: in 2024, the winery installed drinking water dispensers in workspaces and distributed personalized aluminum bottles, significantly reducing plastic use. Today, 94.7% of collaborators are employed on permanent contracts, with an average tenure of 11 years, and receive internal training focused on sustainability, safety, and digital skills.
Environment and Innovation
In 2024, Fontanafredda continued its determined path toward a lighter future — not only in terms of weight, but also impact. Reducing raw materials used in bottling has become a daily, conscious practice, shaped by increasingly sustainable choices. Over 30% of bottles produced in 2024 were made from lightweight glass, reducing energy consumption and transport-related emissions.
The glass used for most of Fontanafredda’s bottles in 2024 consisted of 89.8% recycled material, sourced from external cullet, AG color, supplied by Verallia Italia — confirming a circular approach. Even in the world of Metodo Classico, details reflect tangible change: the new bio-based bidule, made from plant-derived materials, replaces traditional plastic, further reducing the environmental impact of packaging.
Fontanafredda Achieves JAS Certification: Results and Future Projects
Confirmations and new milestones marked a year of tangible growth for Fontanafredda, which in 2024 renewed its Bio, Vegan, and Equalitas certifications and obtained the JAS (Japanese Agricultural Standard) certification, confirming compliance with Japan’s rigorous organic standards and opening new opportunities in international markets.
Among the most notable recognitions, Vinventions awarded the winery the Certificate of Plastic Action, acknowledging its contribution to the collection of 1,069 kg of plastic in 2024 — made possible through the use of Nomacorc Blue Line by Vinventions closures, made from recycled plastic and a concrete symbol of circular economy in the wine supply chain.
Fontanafredda’s commitment to an ethical and sustainable business model was also recognized with the Impact Marketing award, for its positive impact on both community and environment.
Looking ahead, Fontanafredda will continue investing in community dialogue and widespread education, placing people and territory at the center of its vision. Key goals for 2025 include: establishing a Sustainability Day, training suppliers on labor exploitation issues, enhancing the Piemonte DOC, and installing a new climate control system in the Bottega del Vino. On the relational front, the company will strengthen its engagement with local communities through surveys and interviews, opening new direct communication channels and promoting a shared culture of sustainability through awareness campaigns with schools, institutions, and local associations.
25 Years of Change Toward a Better Tomorrow
For over 25 years, Fontanafredda has pursued the path of sustainability with vision and consistency. In the late 1990s, it began developing a more sensitive and respectful production model, participating in the European Union’s “Agri-Environmental Measures” and introducing its own guidelines for advanced, integrated agriculture — the result of collaborations with universities and research centers.
In 2012, Vino Libero was born — a program that anticipated the future by eliminating chemical fertilizers, herbicides, and excess sulfites.
In 2015, the transition to organic began, culminating in 2018 with the first certified harvest, coinciding with the winery’s 160th anniversary. The year 2020 marked the launch of the Green Renaissance, and since 2021, the publication of the first Sustainability Report.
Fontanafredda has received the CONAI award for wine packaging redesign two years in a row, adopted new production technologies, and recently achieved JAS certification for organic production according to Japanese standards — confirming a path of continuous evolution.
In 2024, this journey was enriched by the Bosco Vigna project, through which Fontanafredda supported the Casa E. di Mirafiore initiative, planting over 170 fruit trees among its vineyards to promote biodiversity in the Langhe, alongside the centuries-old trees of the Bosco dei Pensieri: 12 hectares of land that preserve one of the last forests in the Langhe and continue to represent a tangible symbol of Fontanafredda’s commitment to biodiversity and landscape regeneration.
