Copper-based phytosanitary treatments are widely employed in viticulture for combating the fungal diseases of European grape (Vitis vinifera L.). Herein we evaluated copper accumulation in the soil of a 50-year-old still productive vineyard in South Italy in comparison with samples taken from a 'control' area in which grapevines had never been cultivated, as well from an abandoned vineyard, now planted with cereals and forage crops, both close to the main area under investigation. Even though the heavy metal contents detected were not of concern for soils nor for wine, Cu accumulates in the soil in amounts significantly higher than the (grapevine free) control and remains at detectable concentrations also in abandoned vineyards where spraying activities had ceased about 20 years before this study. Despite the long Cu residence times in soil, the wine produced with grapes of the same vineyard showed Cu levels low enough to be safely used for human consumption, probably due to mechanisms of metal precipitation occurring during wine maturation, which are typically accompanied by sedimentation processes in artisanal production. However, this should not diminish the urgency of decreasing the copper usage as antifungal remedy in viticulture to prevent copper contamination of the agricultural soils.
Keywords: copper accumulation; copper toxicity; heavy metals; wine analysis.