Updated on 2 June 2026 — this article now incorporates the DVF data for the full year 2025, drawn from our observatory of vineyard prices in France.
Many labels and certifications apply to viticulture and affect the chosen production method. Today there is a genuine desire among winegrowers to move towards increasingly environmentally friendly production. Through this article, we guide you so that you can better find your way among the different types of viticulture in existence.
Table of contents
Where does conventional viticulture come from?
Sustainable viticulture, a step towards organic?
What labels apply to sustainable viticulture?
And in organic viticulture, what products are used?
What labels apply to organic viticulture?
Is a wine from sustainable viticulture an organic wine?
To go even further, a look at biodynamic viticulture!
Is it possible to intervene even less in wine production?
What you need to remember!
Farming method and the value of the wine estate
Learn more
Emerging in the wake of the Industrial Revolution, marked by the discovery of numerous technical innovations, conventional agriculture specialised in order to give rise to monocultures, such as viticulture for example. This research focused on increasing productivity and encouraged the use of inputs such as synthetic fertilisers, pesticides and herbicides. However, since the soil was considered at that time as a mere medium for producers, this resulted in soil depletion, thereby prompting a search for alternatives such as sustainable or even organic viticulture.
For some winegrowers, sustainable viticulture is a first step towards organic viticulture.
In the eyes of the law, sustainable viticulture appeared in 2002. It is a method aimed at encouraging winegrowers to reduce the use of pesticides so that plant protection products are used to treat the vine only when necessary. This helps to reduce the environmental impact of chemical products in order to meet sustainable development criteria.
This new wine-growing method is recognised by two national certifications:
| The High Environmental Value certification (HVE), established by the Grenelle de l'Environnement in 2008, applies to all forms of agriculture. This label rewards in particular those farms that have chosen to be involved in protecting biodiversity, fauna, flora and water management. |  |
| Terra Vitis is a certification created to raise awareness of the existence of sustainable viticulture and to draw up a charter of commitment. This charter aims in particular to highlight respect for the environment, the economic sustainability of wine-growing businesses and traceability. Created in 1998, it is also a network now bringing together several hundred winegrowers gathered in regional associations. |  |
Good to know: An estate certified Terra Vitis is immediately granted level 2 of High Environmental Value.
In the context of organic viticulture, winegrowers use only products free of synthetic organic molecules. Organic farming does not prohibit inputs; it authorises products of natural and organic origin to protect the plant from disease, such as sulphur and copper. Raw materials of natural origin are used in particular in order to favour soil life and the sustainability of animal and plant species supporting the natural ecosystem.
Organic viticulture also has its own labels.
| Agriculture Biologique (AB), owned by the French Ministry of Agriculture, this label is optional on bottles of organic wine. |  |
| Euro-leaf, the European Union label that has been mandatory on the labels of French organic wines since 2009, since European countries can no longer have their own legislation regarding organic farming. |  |
Sustainable viticulture is almost organic wine, but not entirely. It comes close to organic viticulture without adopting all of its constraints. As a result, this type of viticulture cannot claim to belong to the "Euro-leaf" logo.
Biodynamic viticulture is above all organic viticulture, requiring a vineyard managed organically and an AB certification in order to be able to claim a so-called biodynamic label. In practice, biodynamic viticulture aims to abolish any alteration of the natural balances of the grape. To this end, it is based in particular on the lunar cycle (waxing moon, waning moon, etc.) and the planetary cycle in vineyard work and cellar work. Another practice is phytotherapy; this consists of plant-based sprays (nettle, horsetail, valerian, etc.).
| Demeter is the best-known label, with a precise set of specifications that is much stricter than the previous labels for winemaking. |  |
| Biodyvin is a label issued by the International Syndicate of Biodynamic Winegrowers (SIVCBD). The set of specifications is based mainly on the grapes rather than on the winemaking itself and includes no strict prohibition as long as the winegrower is able to justify their choices. |  |
Some winegrowers, in addition to being organic or biodynamic, take the approach much further by prohibiting any inputs, such as products added during winemaking (apart from a possible tiny presence of sulphur). The aim is to handle the wine as little as possible and let nature take its course; this is what is called a natural wine.
| These wines have no official definition or any certifications. As a result, sets of specifications are drawn up with the AVN or SAINS designation for winegrowers who undertake to comply with them. |  |
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Viticulture is subject to numerous processes allowing the granting of labels and certifications. Owing to a strong trend towards the preservation of our environment, viticulture has also transformed in order to comply with it. Largely described as "conventional", alternatives exist to facilitate its conversion towards increasingly sustainable ways of operating.
After reading this article, would you like to invest in a wine estate? Would you like some additional information to be supported in this investment? Once you have found your dream property on ma-propriete.fr, do not hesitate to contact the expert in charge of that property. They will be able to answer all your questions so that you can run your vineyard by the book!
The wine-growing method — conventional, sustainable, organic or biodynamic — increasingly influences the commercial valuation of wines, and by extension that of the estate itself. Estates certified organic or HVE benefit from growing demand from buyers who are sensitive to environmental issues, which can translate into a higher sale price for comparable acreage and appellation.
To situate this value within the market, the DVF (Demandes de Valeurs Foncières) data for the full year 2025 — analysed in our observatory of vineyard prices in France — provide a reference framework: the national median price for vineyards stands at €23,985/ha in 2025, but the gaps between vineyards remain considerable depending on the appellation and location. The 2025 hierarchy ranges from €1,000,000/ha in Champagne to €9,205/ha in the South-West, passing through €125,000/ha in Burgundy or €39,864/ha in Provence. Within the same vineyard, the organic certification of a well-positioned estate is an additional valuation factor.
For a complete analysis of prices by vineyard and by region, see our series on vineyard prices in France or the listings in our wine-growing category.
