In the same month Swiss scientists found that planting a trillion trees could be the best way to fight climate change, a French producer has revealed plans to plant a tree for every bottle purchased.
The François Dubois Esprit Nature Champagne comes in a glass bottle, which, thanks to a plastic PET film that holds the labelling information, is free from ink or glue. The packaging makes for easier recycling.
The Swiss report, meanwhile, published July 5th in the journal Science, found that planting a trillion trees on a globally unused area of almost one billion hectares could, over the next few decades, suck up about 25% of the carbon in our atmosphere.
To get the Champagne trees planted, consumers (also now referred to as ‘consum-planters’) must remove the plastic film, take a photo of the number underneath and then upload the photo to a website. They will then be kept up to date with news of their tree or trees.
The François Dubois champagne range, which includes Esprit Nature, is owned by another Champagne house, Domaines Jeeper. In an email, a Jeeper spokesperson said the estate had already acquired about 20 hectares for tree planting, or enough land for about 30,000 to 40,000 trees.
As the number of buyers, hopefully, pushes the tree population beyond that, the estate already has plans in place to work with existing reforestation projects run by Reforest’Action.
Reforest’Action is a socially responsible French ‘crowd planter’ whose core business is tree planting and carbon offset implementation.
The Esprit Nature Champagne costs about €30.00 for the Cuvée Tradition and €36.00 for the Cuvée Pure Sélection, which is aged for 30 months and contains a greater portion of Chardonnay grapes in the blend.
Depending on the type of Champagne purchased, consumers can choose different trees, with options including a fruit tree, a pine tree or a poplar.
The producers aim to sell about 100,000 bottles of the Esprit Nature Champagne a year, and supermarket orders have already hit 30,000 bottles.
The François Dubois Champagne is certified as HVE (high environmental value) and its aim is to reach zero emissions by 2020 and end fossil fuel usage at the property by 2025.
Domaines Jeeper is owned by Nicolas Dubois, while French luxury hotelier Michel Reybier has a 60% shareholding in the operation.
