The Wines of Alentejo Sustainability Program, of the Alentejo Regional WineGrowing Comission, has just announced the adhesion to the international group “4 pour 1000”. The initiative, which brings together private and public entities – from governments and non-profit organizations, to research centers and companies – works in favor of the struggle to adapt to climate change by exploring the role of agricultural soils in capturing carbon dioxide (CO2) present in the atmosphere, as well as as a guarantee of food safety.

The “4 pour 1000” group considers that an annual increase in the carbon present in soils would significantly reduce the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere, increased by human activities. This conviction is in line with the work that the WASP has been developing through the promotion of good soil management, with the incentive to implement measures with Alentejo producers, such as greening, composting or the conservation and regeneration of biodiversity.

João Barroso, WASP coordinator, states that “integration in this important initiative was a natural step in the direction that the WASP intends to trace, since the values ​​and purpose of the initiative are aligned with everything we stand for, namely that agriculture ( and viticulture in particular) is not part of the problem, but part of the solution to climate change, also ensuring the sharing of even more best practices by and for our members”.

“4 pour 1000” was created by the French Ministry of Agriculture and Food and has the support of the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture and the Federal Department of Agriculture and Food (BLE), as well as the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture.

It should be remembered that WASPis a pioneering initiative in Portugal and that, for the promotion of more sustainable practices at an environmental, social and economic level in Alentejo vineyards and wineries, it has already been distinguished with numerous international awards, since the “The Drinks Business Green Awards ”; the European Business Promotion Awards, an initiative of the European Commission and coordinated, in Portugal, by IAPMEI; or the title of European Ambassador for Rural Innovation for the LIAISON project, a European Innovation Partnership for Agricultural Productivity and Sustainability also launched by the European Commission.