SIP Certified

What SIP Certified does

SIP Certified (Sustainability In Practice Certified) is a third-party-verified sustainability certification program for vineyards, wineries, and wine brands, operated by Vineyard Team, a 501(c) nonprofit headquartered in Atascadero, California. The program was launched in 2008 after four years of expert input and field testing, evolving from Vineyard Team's 1994 Positive Points System. SIP Certified verifies compliance with 120 non-negotiable standards organized across 14 chapters covering water conservation, soil health, energy efficiency, pest management, wildlife conservation, business sustainability, and social equity. Standards are reviewed annually by a Technical Advisory Committee and undergo a full external peer review every five year by university researchers, regulators, and industry professionals. Geographic reach currently spans California, Oregon, and Michigan, with ~250 member businesses, 40,000+ certified vineyard acres, and 65M+ bottles of certified wine produced by members.

The core technology platform is a cloud-based certification database at app.sipcertified.org that centralizes property registration, application completion, document upload, inspection scheduling, and certification status tracking. Independent third-party inspectors verify adherence annually between June 1 and July 15 on a three-year inspection cycle (full records and onsite in cycle 1; offsite or short documentation with onsite in cycles 2–3), and review block-to-bottle documentation for 20% of applied wines. The consumer-facing layer includes a searchable wine finder, the SIP Certified logo licensed to member brands for bottles and point-of-sale, a marketing toolkit, sales tools, a classified grape/wine marketplace, the Sustainable Winegrowing Podcast, the annual Sustainable Ag Expo, and the ReSIProcal February cross-promotional tasting event.

Revenue is generated primarily through recurring certification fees: per-acre fees for vineyards, per-gallon fees for wineries, and volume-based fees for wine certification (wines must contain at least 85% SIP Certified fruit). A free Self-Assessment tool serves as the lead-generation funnel. Member fees are invoiced annually on a December 1–November 30 cycle, with aggregated licensing available for multi-property owners under common ownership and $250–$500 late fees. SIP Certified does not sell products directly; rather, certified brands reach consumers through their own wholesale, retail, and direct-to-consumer channels (tasting rooms, DTC e-commerce), with the SIP Certified logo and wine-finder database facilitating discovery.

Name

SIP Certified

Legal name

Sustainability In Practice (SIP) Certified

Website

https://sipcertified.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

SIP Certified is a third-party sustainability certification program for vineyards, wineries, and wine brands in California, Oregon, and Michigan. Operated by nonprofit Vineyard Team, it verifies compliance with science-based standards covering environmental stewardship, social equity, and business viability across 40,000+ certified acres.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sustainability Certification Services

NAICS

Wineries (31213)

SIC

Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

Vineyard Certification & Sustainability Programs (Organic, Biodynamic, Regenerative, GAP) (AFAGAJAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Wine & Sparkling Wine Wineries & Brands (CRADAIAB), Organic Vineyard & Wine Grape Farming (AFAGAKAI)

Keywords

• Sustainable wine certification
• Vineyard sustainability standards
• Third-party wine verification
• Eco-friendly viticulture certification
• Winery sustainability program

Headquarters

HQ city

Atascadero

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Vineyard & Winery Certification Fees: Certification fees for vineyards and wineries are calculated on a per-acre (vineyards) and per-gallon (wineries) basis. Aggregated per-acre and per-gallon licensing fees are available for properties with the same owner. Fees are invoiced annually after eligibility determination and are due by a specified deadline (September 20 per reference to 2023 invoices). Certification runs on an annual cycle from December 1 through November 30.
2. Wine Certification Fees: Wines made with at least 85% SIP Certified fruit (estate or purchased) can be certified at any time. Fees are based on wine volumes. The SIP Certified database enables streamlined wine applications where members can upload documentation directly.
3. Self-Assessment (Free): Free self-assessment tool allows vineyards and wineries to explore the program and evaluate their readiness for certification without cost. Serves as a lead-generation mechanism for paid certification.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

SIP Certified is a third-party-verified sustainability certification program for vineyards, wineries, and wines, operated by the nonprofit Vineyard Team. The program evaluates applicants against 120 non-negotiable science-based standards spanning ten sustainability domains, verified through independent annual inspections on a three-year cycle. Certified vineyards, wineries, and wines made with at least 85% SIP Certified fruit may display the SIP Certified seal, and members receive access to the cloud-based database platform, education resources, marketing toolkit, and the ReSIProcal February tasting room event.

Product overview

SIP Certified is a certification ecosystem consisting of a core database/application platform, three main certification services (vineyard, winery, and wine), and supporting modules including a free Self-Assessment Tool, Education & Training resources, a Marketing Toolkit, Sales Tools, and the ReSIProcal February promotional event. The program enables vineyards, wineries, and wine brands to demonstrate sustainability credentials through third-party verified certification, with the database serving as the central platform for applications, inspections, document management, and certification tracking.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SIP Certified Database / Certification Platform A web-based application platform at app.sipcertified.org that serves as the central hub for SIP Certified property registration, application completion, document upload, inspection scheduling, certification tracking, and wine application management. It is used by vineyard and winery members to manage the full certification lifecycle.
• Vineyard & Winery Certification Third-party certification service that verifies vineyards and/or wineries have implemented stringent sustainable winemaking and winegrowing standards across 120 non-negotiable criteria. Certification runs on an annual cycle from December 1 through November 30 and is billed annually on per-acre (vineyards) and per-gallon (wineries) basis.
• Wine Certification Certification allowing wines made with at least 85% SIP Certified fruit (estate or purchased) to carry the SIP Certified logo on bottle labels. Wines can be certified at any time and undergo independent block-to-bottle documentation review for 20% of applied wines.
• Self-Assessment Tool A free self-assessment tool allowing prospective members to explore the certification program, learn about sustainable practices, and determine readiness for full certification. Completing the Self-Assessment takes approximately three hours and serves as a lead-generation funnel for paid certification.

Quantifiable outcome

• 40,000+ certified vineyard acres
• +8 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Vineyard TeamcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1994Vineyard Team is the parent nonprofit organization of SIP Certified. Founded in 1994, Vineyard Team created the Positive Points System (first self-assessment tool for sustainable vineyard farming) which evolved into the SIP Certified program launched in 2008. The nonprofit guides vision, governance, and strategic direction of the certification program.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Demeter Association: Demeter certifies biodynamic farming and processing across crops including wine grapes, representing a broader and longer-tenured sustainability certification incumbent that overlaps with SIP Certified at premium vineyard and winery members.
• Fair Trade USA: Fair Trade USA certifies agricultural products — including wine grapes in some programs — for ethical labor and sourcing practices, competing with SIP Certified for the 'social sustainability' pillar of wine sustainability claims.

Direct peers

• Lodi Rules for Sustainable Winegrowing: Administered by the Lodi Winegrape Commission, Lodi Rules is the oldest sustainable winegrowing certification in the U.S. and the most direct competitor to SIP Certified for California vineyard certification and seal use on bottles.
• California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance (CSWA) — Certified California Sustainable Winegrowing (CCSW): CSWA runs the CCSW/Certified California Sustainable Winegrowing program, a third-party-verified California wine sustainability certification with overlapping scope, members, and regulatory relationships that competes directly with SIP Certified for California growers and wineries.

Emerging players

• Bee Better Certified: Administered by the Xerces Society, Bee Better Certified is a pollinator-habitat certification that vineyards increasingly pursue; it competes for the same sustainability-marketing budget as SIP Certified, particularly for members emphasizing biodiversity.
• Salmon-Safe: Salmon-Sale certifies Pacific Northwest vineyards and farms for ecosystem-level watershed protection; it overlaps with SIP Certified on environmental chapters and is often stacked alongside other certifications by the same growers.

Regional players

• LIVE (Low Input Viticulture & Enology): LIVE certifies vineyards and wineries in the Pacific Northwest (Oregon, Washington, Idaho) for sustainable and organic practices, serving as a regional counterpart to SIP Certified in adjacent U.S. wine geographies.
• Oregon Certified Sustainable Wine (OCSW) — Oregon Wine Board: Oregon Wine Board's OCSW program is the Oregon-specific sustainability certification built on LIVE, providing a regional alternative to SIP Certified for Oregon-based growers, wineries, and wine brands.

Others

• Equitable Food Initiative: EFI certifies fresh-produce growers on labor practices and worker engagement; while focused on produce rather than wine, it competes for the same grower-level sustainability-certification budget and overlaps with SIP Certified's social-equity chapter.
• Climate Neutral Certified: Climate Neutral Certified provides an enterprise-level carbon-emissions certification increasingly adopted by beverage brands; it complements or competes with SIP Certified's energy and climate-related standards for wine labels seeking a carbon claim.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sipcertified
• Facebookfacebook.com/sipcertified
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sip-certified
• Instagraminstagram.com/sipcertified

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SIP Certified