Scheid Family Wines began the path to sustainable farming and winemaking long ago. From our start in 1972, we’ve held firm to the belief that growing the highest quality wine grapes and crafting the best wines possible can only be achieved through taking care of the land and our people. Our commitment to environmental stewardship and equitable treatment of our employees is woven into the fabric of Scheid Family Wines. A reflection of this mindset are the third party certifications we have earned, our wind turbine that powers 100% of our winery operations and generates enough energy for 125 homes in the surrounding area, and our longstanding support of our local community that attest to our deep commitment to sustainable standards.
Certified California Sustainable Winegrowing is a statewide certification program that provides third-party verification of a winery’s commitment to continuous improvement in the adoption and implementation of sustainable winegrowing practices. We achieved certification on eleven of our estate vineyards in 2014 and on our winery in 2018. In addition to environmentally sound practices, CCSW includes sections on responsible business and community practices, which is a core value of Scheid Family Wines.
British Retail Consortium is arguably the most rigorous, internationally accepted standard for food safety. With 25,000 auditors in 130+ countries, BRC is among a small group of accreditations recognized by the Global Food Safety Initiative. GFSI defines best practices throughout the entire food supply chain to ensure food safety for consumers. We were first certified in December 2016 earning the highest grade of ‘A’. Since then, with each annual audit, we have continued to achieve grade ‘A’ ratings and exceed the BRC’s rigorous standards.
HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) is an internationally recognized system for reducing the risk of safety hazards and ensure farm-to-table consistency and protection. We became HACCP certified in January 2015.
Global G.A.P. Certification (Good Agricultural Practice) is an internationally recognized system that sets standards to ensure safe and sustainable agriculture and ensure product safety, environmental responsibility and the health, safety and welfare of workers. We became the first Global G.A.P. certified vineyard in the USA in November 2015.
In July 2017, Scheid Family Wines erected a huge wind turbine at our winery located four miles south of the town of Greenfield in Monterey County. This renewable energy source stands tall above the local countryside with blades that reach 396 feet into the sky. It generates 100% of the power needed to run the winery and bottling operations, plus power an additional 125 homes. It is the ideal power source to utilize the inexhaustible winds of the Salinas Valley and is more effective than solar as wind turbines generate electricity at night and don’t lose efficiency due to dust.
We are proud to support many local organizations and programs in our community, such as the annual Scheid Writing Contest which has distributed over $400,000 in scholarship money to local-area students. While pursuing our goal of crafting the best wine possible, we honor our commitment to be good stewards of the land, enhance the well-being of our employees and support our local community.