To bread, bread and wine… cutting-edge technology. A proficient forecast is a powerful tool for winemaking. By leveraging a solid forecasting algorithm, harvest projections can be refined, enabling smarter scheduling of grape picking and smoother entry into the winery, explains Mireia Torres. She serves as the innovation and information director at Familia Torres, one of the key players in AgrarIA, a consortium of 24 companies funded by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation with around 10 million euros. The aim is to modernize Spanish agricultural production with advanced technology while enhancing sustainability.
Wine harvested with Artificial Intelligence
Each participant contributes from their own specialty: engineering, biotech, and technology firms such as Hispatec, PharmaMar Group, and GMV (which leads the project) explore the technical side; institutional partners such as CSIC and the Universities of Salamanca and Seville provide academic backing; distributors including Casa Ametller, Kivnon Logística, and PrimaFrio handle reach-to-consumer operations; while producers like Florette and Familia Torres conduct field trials. The collaboration spans vineyard and processing environments alike, illustrating a multi-disciplinary approach to technological adoption in viticulture.
According to this alliance, artificial intelligence can assist in predicting the quantity of grapes destined for the winery. “By collating historical production data from multiple plots and analyzing historical imagery, Copernicus-derived high-resolution satellite data and commercial imagery, it becomes possible to study past behavior, current status, and future trajectories using machine-learning solutions,” Torres notes. The idea is to turn data into actionable insight that informs decisions across the harvest cycle.
In practical terms, the group is deploying an algorithmic framework to support production control and grape procurement decisions, alongside other operational improvements. The broader vision encompasses more than the current project. Familia Torres has consistently pursued R&D investments, with roughly 900,000 euros poured into research and development last year alone. The R&D agenda includes cobotics — robotic systems that collaborate with humans — and a keen interest in how satellites, drones, soil humidity and temperature sensors, and phenological monitoring cameras can elevate harvest outcomes. There is also emphasis on algorithms that improve maintenance forecasting for machinery, optimize distribution routes, boost energy efficiency, and refine drip-irrigation decision-making.
climate change
Climate resilience is a central concern. The innovation lead notes that climate considerations have been an ongoing thread since 2008, with the AgrarIA-type initiatives helping the winery realize efficiency gains in production. Earlier collaborations included Cenit Deméter, the sector’s first major consortium, and Innovine, a European-partner program designed to adapt methods with environmental awareness. A Globalviti project, funded by CDTI at around 9 million euros, sought strategies to optimize wine production in the face of climate shifts, using climate data as a backdrop for improved decision-making. These experiences lay the groundwork for continued digitalization across the business, extending from vineyard management to processing and logistics.
Looking ahead, Familia Torres — a family-owned operation with nine wineries in Spain and two abroad in Chile and California, exporting to a hundred countries and employing about 1,200 people — views digitalization as the core priority. When asked about future plans, the answer is clear: accelerate digitization across every vineyard, strengthening data-driven operations and expanding technological capabilities across regions. The message from Mireia Torres emphasizes a commitment to ongoing innovation, leveraging data, sensors, and automation to sustain growth while navigating environmental and supply-chain challenges.