PROMOTING GOOD FARMING PRACTICES
THE ALLIANCE FINE CHAMPAGNE (AFC) AND THEIR TRAINING COURSES
For over 10 years, at Rémy Martin we have been pioneering responsible farming practices in our fields.
“exceptional practices help us achieve exceptional cognacs”
In 2007, the Domaines were certified as Sustainable Agriculture (Agriculture Raisonnée). In 2012, they were among the very first in France to obtain the High Environmental Value (HVE) certification.
Since 2014 and through the HVE certification, the House and the Alliance Fine Champagne cooperative have aimed to increase interprofessional momentum towards environmentally friendly practices.
Our aim is to gradually mobilise the members of the Alliance Fine Champagne cooperative towards environmental excellence:
In 2020: 100% of partner land follows sustainable farming processes. 50% of partner land is HVE certified, two years ahead of our initial goal.
In order to encourage good practices on a wider scale, the Rémy Martin Domaines have been members of the Ecophyto network since 2011, a national initiative led by the Ministry of Agriculture, and the DEPHY farm network.
WORKING TOWARDS HVE CERTIFICATION
ALLIANCE FINE CHAMPAGNE (AFC) TRAINING
Since 2007, the House of Rémy Martin has been running training sessions to help the Alliance Fine Champagne winegrowers improve their practices.
“This pioneering approach is based on a shared passion for environmental excellence”
Since 2014, Rémy Martin and the AFC, in partnership with the Chambers of Agriculture, have set up a three-stage training program, leading to obtaining the Environmental Certification of Agricultural Holdings, supervised by the Ministry for Agriculture and Food.
The first stage of the training is a collective approach. It enables the cooperative’s members to obtain the Level 1 Environmental Certification.
Winegrowers can then individually continue their training towards the Level 3 or High Environmental Value (HVE) certification, awarded by an independent certification body.
The majority of AFC member farms are involved in the Level 1 or 3 environmental certification process.
Director of the Alliance Fine Champagne
Christophe Forget
THE HVE CERTIFICATION
ALLIANCE FINE CHAMPAGNE (AFC) TRAINING
The High Environmental Value agriculture certification (HVE) identifies and promotes farms which use environmentally-friendly practices.
“What matters is that our partners take ownership of this certification”
It is designed according to a gradual certification process comprising of three levels, the highest of which is qualified as High Environmental Value (HVE). The HVE is based on environmental performance indicators, which apply to the whole farm.
This certification attests to the preservation of biodiversity (elements include hedges, grass strips, trees, flowers and insects, for example), but also to the controlled pressure of agricultural practices on the environment (air, climate, water and soil).
To pursue environmental excellence, Rémy Martin naturally chose the rewarding HVE certification. It unites the profession to common standards and promotes the environmental progress initiative to consumers, thanks to a logo that can be used on raw and processed products.
Head of Quality Department, DGPE, Ministry for Agriculture & Food
Valérie Pieprzownik
BIODIVERSITY
THE AFC WINEGROWERS
“Certification calls into question modern practices and aims to promote a balance”
THE HIGH ENVIRONMENTAL VALUE CERTIFICATION INCLUDES A COMPREHENSIVE REFLECTION ON THE CULTIVATION OF THE VINE.
In a continuous improvement process, the aim is to encourage winegrowers to reflect on their practices and to promote alternative methods.
In terms of biodiversity, the HVE certification enables the preservation of natural balances and the pooling of savoir-faire.
The Chambers of Agriculture and the House of Rémy Martin also help winegrowers to develop agro-ecological practices on their farms: planting old varieties of fruit trees, flower fallows or hedges that act as insect reservoirs and protect crops. In particular, bee fallows encourage the cultivation of green manures which starts a floral recovery from the beginning of spring, which is necessary to restart bee activity.
DEPUTY CEO, DISTILLERIE MICHEL BOINAUD
Rémi Boinaud
THE HVE AND ITS FINANCIAL IMPACT
THE AFC WINEGROWERS
“We have everything to gain from environmental certification, both individually and collectively.”
THE HVE CERTIFICATION IS ONE OF THE CONDITIONS FOR THE DURABILITY OF COGNAC ACTIVITY.
It is part of an overall approach to promote the progress of the terroir and its products. The House of Rémy Martin supports individual and collective winegrowers throughout the environmental certification process. The training courses enable the cooperative’s members to identify the strong points and areas for improvement of their farms, to give full meaning to the efforts made in terms of the environment and to obtain advice on the administrative procedures linked to the process.
The cost of the investments is paid off by transferring curative expenses to preventive expenditure for the vineyard. In the long term, the benefits of certification materialise in a better knowledge of the vineyard. In the practice of the profession, the HVE approach requires winegrowers to be precise and take into account the overall environment of the vine: weather conditions, topography of the ground, humidity and hydrography. These analyses are facilitated by the existence of increasingly reliable decision support tools.
HVE certified winegrower and distiller
