Since its creation, Esporão has always been acutely concerned with preserving the environment and nature. This concern is reflected in Esporão’s philosophy and all those working with the company, who care about preserving nature and its biodiversity. Reducing the negative impact of the company’s activities on biodiversity levels is one of Esporão’s aims. Doing so, while boosting their positive impact, is the ideal that the company aspires to.

Consolidating its commitment to protecting and defending biodiversity, Esporão was the first partner in the wine business in the world to sign the “Countdown 2010” protocol.

This is a European initiative that is part of the “Stemming the Loss of Biodiversity until 2010” programme, launched by the Portuguese Presidency of the European Union. Biodiversity continues to decline, leading to the establishing of political commitments to buck this trend around the year 2010. Currently, the network boasts over 600 partners worldwide.

To help conciliate economic activity with supporting biodiversity, Esporão, the company that owns Herdade do Esporão, has always made this an overall aim, highlighting its compatibility with its values: that this is a question of a commitment to society and civic duty.

As a Countdown 2010 partner, Esporão is committed to:

- Defining a code of best practices for viniculture, olive growing and forestry with the aim of encouraging biodiversity and minimising soil erosion, with an appropriate management of respective zones;

- Initiating a biodiversity assessment and monitoring process via a conservation action plan that includes the entire Herdade do Esporão area, with special attention given to the interaction between cultures and habitats;

- Encouraging the culture of a wide range of original genetic grape and olive varieties, thus protecting the viability of these regional varieties and plants via, for example, the planting of a lab-vineyard that includes some of the traditional Alentejo grape varieties that are in danger of becoming extinct;

- Encouraging the development of a bio-diverse and multifunctional forest made up of essentially indigenous species;

- Developing and communicating strategies that enhance and promote its products (wine and olive oil) based on the effectiveness of pro-biodiversity practices;

- Developing strategies and services of rural tourism and ecotourism that enhance the effectiveness of pro-biodiversity management.

As part of the Countdown 2010 protocol, Esporão has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Institute of Nature and Biodiversity Conservation (ICNB) to accompany, contextualise and support the company’s projects that help the preservation of biodiversity.

Reducing the negative impact of the company’s activities on biodiversity levels is one of Esporão’s aims. Doing so, while boosting their positive impact, is the ideal aspired to.

Preserving the environment and nature can also mean saving millions of Euros in treating vines and olive groves and reducing maintenance costs for irrigation filters, thanks to the quality of the dam water. On top of this, selling environmentally certified wood and acorns (which is more valuable), generates more resources which can later be reused in treating the forested area.

The ICNB will assess the impact of Esporão’s policies and activities on biodiversity and the terrain, both at global and sector levels.