Scientists: Warming temperatures could make 70% of the world’s wine-growing regions unsuitable to produce grapes [Video]

Rising global temperatures could change where the majority of the world’s wine is produced as mid-latitude regions may no longer be able to grow grapes, according to researchers.

Up to 70% of current wine-producing regions could face a substantial risk of losing the suitability for wine-growing if global temperatures increase beyond 2 degrees Celsius since the Industrial Revolution, a review of more than 200 studies published Tuesday in Nature Reviews Earth & Environment found.

Many of the regions known for producing wine are located along the mid-latitude range, including California, southern France and northern Spain. But climate change could change the geography of wine production as warmer temperatures impact grape yield, grape composition at harvest and wine quality, according to the review.

The researchers segmented each continent and their wine-producing areas into macro-regions defined by specific climate-driven conditions, estimating that there is a substantial risk of unsuitability for 49% to 70% of existing wine regions, depending …