Making the first harvest of a zero-emission Barolo cru in the world and celebrating 2025 by uncorking the first 100% sustainable bottle of the prized king of wines: this is the goal that led to the birth of the partnership between FPT Industrial and Fontanafredda, presented today during a digital press conference. A global challenge such as the energy transition, which requires not only wide-ranging shared solutions, but also targeted actions on specialized sectors; it must be able both to produce concrete results and to attract the interest of a wider public, also in function of the high value that these initiatives represent. Even more so, when these initiatives are the result of collaboration with partners who have long been committed to environmental responsibility.
As a result of these guidelines that have always been an integral part of the brand identity, FPT Industrial, the global motoring brand of CNH Industrial NV and the world’s largest manufacturer of low environmental impact engines, joins forces with Fontanafredda, the historic winery founded in 1858 by the first king of Italy producer of Barolo and great wines of the Langhe, which today has 120 hectares of certified organic vineyards and, in the name of a new Green Renaissance, gives life to a virtuous viticulture with zero environmental impact. The core of the collaboration is the supply of two tracked vineyard tractors powered by biomethane, which will work in the cru Vigna La Rosa where the legendary Barolo of the same name is born, a wine that in its history has entered the Top 100 of Wine Spectator, as one of the most good in the world. The two tractors for which compactness and consequently limited dimensions are an essential prerequisite are designed for Fontanafredda and developed starting from a vineyard tracked tractor; they are capable of delivering 75CV of power with a maximum torque of 330Nm and therefore guarantee, in total safety, performances absolutely comparable to those of the diesel model, even on the steepest slopes and on the slippery grounds that characterize the systems of the finest vineyards in the Langhe area. All with a zero ecological footprint, as the biomethane that powers the engines is not of fossil origin, but is obtained through the anaerobic digestion process of agricultural residues.
Fontanafredda has been committed for years to environmental sustainability, in the countryside, applying organic farming, and in the cellar, using native yeasts. A ten-year journey, which in 2020 led to a new perspective: the Green Renaissance. The new Renaissance will lead to the creation of a great world community, united around respect for the Earth, which also becomes respect for people. Values that have led to making all daily choices “green”, from the reuse of water, to the choice of healthy, natural and respectful materials for packaging, to the use of clean energy for the Village. With the 2021 harvest, thanks to FPT Industrial, even mobility in the vineyard becomes sustainable. “The arrival of bio-methane powered tractors will allow us to reduce emissions to zero in the vineyard and lead an increasingly respectful viticulture”, explains a note from the winery.
The three-year partnership between FPT Industrial and Fontanafredda, which is supported by the Tobias Project of the Piedmont Region with the contribution of New Holland Agriculture and CNH Industrial and local companies, once again demonstrates how such complex and articulated projects can be a virtuous example of working networking for a common goal. The partners involved in the supply chain project are: DIMSPORT Srl, HYSYTECH Srl, STCSrl, STEMS-CNR and TCE TORINO CREA ENGINEERING Srl. During the press conference held today 19 February 2019, the president of the Piedmont Region Alberto Cirio spoke underlining the importance to create a system to achieve important objectives in terms of sustainability for an increasingly competitive territory.