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Moët Hennessy, the Wines & Spirits division of the LVMH group, is organising the first edition of the WLSF on 1st and 2nd June in Arles-en-Provence, in the Bouches-du-Rhône region. An open and participatory agora to accelerate knowledge sharing on soil regeneration in viticulture.
The preservation of living soil has always been part of the DNA of the Moët Hennessy companies and their founders, who are keen to pass on their know-how to future generations. The sustainability and resilience of the entire wine and spirits industry depends on soil quality. Protecting this precious heritage is one of Moët Hennessy’s major commitments to sustainable development.
Today, the agricultural and viticultural world already has more sustainable solutions and innovations for managing soils. In order to accelerate this transition and share best practice, the World Living Soils Forum will bring together 100 speakers, including researchers, experts, public institutions, journalists, professional associations, and wine and spirits and food companies from around the world for two days of conferences, round tables, meetings and workshops.
The event will be accessible online in real time for all on the dedicated platform: https://www.worldlivingsoilsforum.com. Visitors are invited to create a personal account to access the programme and the best moments will be available for replay from 4th June.
Concrete and operational solutions
By placing soil protection and regeneration at the heart of its commitments to combat climate change and biodiversity loss, the WSF has several objectives:
—Creating synergies between those involved in soil regeneration
—Share concrete action plans for sustainable and regenerative viticulture and agriculture
—Strengthening the links between science, research, innovation and the realities on the ground
—To raise awareness of existing scientific methodologies to manage soils in a more sustainable way
The theme of living soils will be studied in all its forms, from the question of the water cycle with Gilles Boeuf, professor at the Collège de France and former president of the French National Museum of Natural History, to that of micro-organisms with Marc-André Selosse, professor at the Museum of Natural History and president of the Société botanique de France. The awareness of young generations to the issue of soils will also be discussed with Ronald Vargas, in charge of soil management at the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), as well as the importance of preserving biodiversity and reforestation with Stéphane Hallaire from Reforest’Action. Discussion will also focus on pollinating insects, indicators for measuring soil pollution, the consequences of abandoning pesticides, and even how soils inspire art.
Moët Hennessy has been committed for many years to an environmental and social programme which is expressed through Living Soils Living Together and which, in particular, enables it to train winegrowers and farmers in new technologies, to support scientific and university projects to combat soil depletion, to invest in the acquisition of environmentally friendly equipment, and to reduce the use of herbicides in the vineyards belonging to Veuve Clicquot (2019), Moët & Chandon (2020) and Hennessy (2021). More recently, the division has also created a research centre in Champagne dedicated to the evolution of winemaking practises.
All the latest from the WLSF event can be followed on the event’s Instagram account