Recent technological advances make it possible to accelerate the breeding process to help wine grapes adapt to climate change, increase disease resistance or cluster size, reduce sugar content, improve flavor, aroma or mouthfeel — and eliminate the need for sulfites.
GreenVenus, LLC, a specialty agriculture technology company, has developed an innovative breeding technique that can significantly accelerate the time it takes to improve crops like grapes.
This approach has successfully bred improved vegetables and fruits that brown more slowly than regular produce. GreenVenus reduced the enzymatic browning of romaine lettuce increasing the shelf life of romaine lettuce by 7‒10 days. Turning its attention to avocados, the company created varieties with higher resistance to browning, helping producers overcome one of the fruit’s most significant sales roadblocks.
GreenVenus is now bringing this groundbreaking leap forward in breeding to the wine industry.
“When we looked at the challenges in the wine industry, we realized that one way to make GreenVenus meaningful would be to eliminate the need to use sulfite in winemaking,” says CEO Dr. Shiv Tiwari. “We found that one of the most important reasons winemakers add sulfite is to block the oxidation caused by polyphenol oxidase. So, we thought, “Let’s kill all polyphenol oxidase genes in the grapevine.”
The biotechnology GreenVenus uses to eliminate the polyphenol oxidase (PPO) gene is called gene editing. This technique edits the grapevine’s intrinsic genes to select desired traits and eliminate undesirable ones, which is also the goal of conventional breeding programs. No external gene materials are added, so the process remains as natural as a farmer selecting the seeds of its best fruit for the following year, which ultimately develops an improved variety.
“Our technology can change grape genetics in less than a year, rather than the six or seven years it takes in a traditional breeding program,” Dr. Tiwari explains. “People are still using a wine grape that is 100 years old, from when they brought germplasm from Spain, Italy and other European countries to Napa and Sonoma. Nurseries are still cutting and growing these same wine grapes today.”
Germplasm is the genetic material that determines hereditary traits, including flavor, color, resistance to pests and diseases, yield and climate adaptability. The continued use of grapevine germplasms from these original domesticated varieties has resulted in poor genomic diversity. This homogeneity now threatens the wine industry because many vines have not been bred to adapt to climate change and newer diseases. Although conventional breeding efforts are in process, bringing traits from a more diverse set of worldwide cultivars can take decades compared to the year needed for a GreenVenus variety.
Allowing Polyphenols to Thrive
Today’s winemaking basics, like the grapes themselves, are closely tied to a centuries-old vinification process, and sulfur dioxide (SO2) remains one of the most widely used chemicals in winemaking to inhibit oxidation and preserve wine. US and EU regulations require wineries to label any wine with 10 mg/liter of sulfur dioxide (SO2) or more. Since concerns over additives in food and beverages continue to rise among consumers, seeing ‘contains sulfites’ on a wine label can cause worries about its healthiness.
GreenVenus’ accelerated breeding program can alleviate consumer concerns about healthiness, allowing wineries to tell consumers that their wines are “all natural.” However, removing PPOs and reducing the use of SO2 offers additional benefits for winemakers because the grape’s other polyphenols remain intact. With PPO no longer degrading attributes like smell, aroma, taste and mouthfeel, the wine can realize the full potential inherent in the grapes. As a result, wineries can dramatically improve a standard low-cost wine to sell at a much higher premium wine price without needing to blend in higher-cost grapes. Wineries can dispense with the “contains sulfites’ on the label and promote their wines as having “all the flavor and none of the sulfites.”
GreenVenus’ new Colombard and Malbec grape varieties are currently available for planting to growers and winemakers through licensing agreements. In addition, the company will complete gene editing on Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Grenache and Gruner Veltliner later this year and Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Pinot Noir and Zinfandel by this time next year.
Boosting Beneficial Grape Attributes
“These innovations are only the beginning,” Dr. Tiwari adds. “Our technologies hold tremendous promise to enhance the resistance of wine grapes to destructive diseases, reduce the reliance on chemical interventions and promote environmentally friendly vinification practices.”
GreenVenus can also draw out specific polyphenols to enhance their impact. Wineries can choose which characteristics to emphasize — improving heat tolerance, encouraging larger clusters, decreasing sugar content or calling out polyphenols linked to functional health benefits.
GreenVenus will continue to develop grape varieties that will thrive in California’s diverse wine-growing regions. It welcomes forward-looking wineries and winemakers to join them in discovering the added value this innovation can bring to their wine and its consumers.
Learn more at greenvenus.com, and if you are interested in a trial planting of GreenVenus vines, contact GreenVenus today.
