What Is the Environmental Impact of Wine Entering Global Value Chains? Studying the Evolution of CO(2) Emissions from the Export of Spanish Denomination of Origin Wines

The continuous growth of the international wine trade and the expansion of international markets is having significant commercial, but also environmental, impacts. The benefits of vineyards in terms of ecosystem service provision are offset by the increase in CO(2) emissions generated by transportation. Denominations of Origin, as quality labels, emphasise a wine’s links to the terroir, where specific elements of culture and environment merge together. However, Denominations of Origin can also have differentiating elements as regards environmental performance. Drawing on an extended multiregional input–output model applied to the Spanish Denominations of Origin with the largest presence in the international wine trade, this study shows that wines with the greatest exporting tradition are those that most reduced their carbon footprint per litre of exported wine in the period 2005–2018, thus being the most environmentally efficient.