Skip to Main Content
HBS Home
  • About
  • Academic Programs
  • Alumni
  • Faculty & Research
  • Baker Library
  • Giving
  • Harvard Business Review
  • Initiatives
  • News
  • Recruit
  • Map / Directions
Faculty & Research
  • Faculty
  • Research
  • Featured Topics
  • Academic Units
  • …→
  • Harvard Business School→
  • Faculty & Research→
Publications
Publications
  • 2017
  • Working Paper
  • HBS Working Paper Series

Creating the Market for Organic Wine: Sulfites, Certification, and Green Values

By: Geoffrey Jones and Emily Grandjean
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
  • | Pages:61
ShareBar

Abstract

This working paper examines the history of organic wine, which provides a case study of failed category creation. The modern organic wine industry emerged during the 1970s in the United States and Western Europe, but it struggled to gain traction compared to other organic food and drink products, including organic tea. Early experiments performed by less-savvy winemakers created a negative reputation for organic wine, which proved a challenge to overcome. Early organic winemakers were often derided for their efforts, as conventional winemakers felt threatened by their claims to be more “natural” or healthful than conventional wines. Making matters more difficult, organic winemaking required a sophisticated understanding of complex environmental and chemical processes in the vineyard and winery, and organic wines typically did not command a premium in the marketplace despite their often higher costs of production. The development of organic wine in countries with different winemaking traditions resulted in little common agreement regarding the definition of “organic” wine. After heated debate regarding the use of sulfites, differing organic wine standards emerged. In the United States organic certification schemes excluded the use of sulfites, while in Europe some use was permitted. For winemakers, distributors and retailers, navigating the complex layers of regulations regarding organic wine was enormously time intensive. Many winemakers chose to forego organic certification so as to avoid the perceived financial and time costs. Organic wine finally attained niche popularity in the 2010s, mainly in northwest Europe and in cosmopolitan global cities elsewhere, as fine-dining restaurants like Noma sought wines with clear terroir. Organic wine remained a tiny percentage of the world wine market. There remained huge differences between countries in consumption of organic wine. The market for organic wine was far larger in Sweden, a country with 9 million inhabitants, than in the United States, with 326 million.

Keywords

Product Launch; Failure; Problems and Challenges; Complexity; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Food and Beverage Industry

Citation

Jones, Geoffrey, and Emily Grandjean. "Creating the Market for Organic Wine: Sulfites, Certification, and Green Values." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 18-048, December 2017.
  • SSRN
  • Read Now

About The Author

Geoffrey G. Jones

General Management
→More Publications

More from the Authors

    • 2025
    • Faculty Research

    Institutional Entrepreneurship and Climate Change

    By: Ann-Kristin Bergquist and Geoffrey Jones
    • February 2025
    • Asian Business & Management

    Deep Responsibility, SDGs, and Asia: A Historical Perspective

    By: Geoffrey Jones
    • 2025
    • Faculty Research

    Sustainability and Green Business in Latin America

    By: Geoffrey Jones
More from the Authors
  • Institutional Entrepreneurship and Climate Change By: Ann-Kristin Bergquist and Geoffrey Jones
  • Deep Responsibility, SDGs, and Asia: A Historical Perspective By: Geoffrey Jones
  • Sustainability and Green Business in Latin America By: Geoffrey Jones
ǁ
Campus Map
Harvard Business School
Soldiers Field
Boston, MA 02163
→Map & Directions
→More Contact Information
  • Make a Gift
  • Site Map
  • Jobs
  • Harvard University
  • Trademarks
  • Policies
  • Accessibility
  • Digital Accessibility
Copyright © President & Fellows of Harvard College.