The Scotch Whisky Association, has unveiled a new sustainability
strategy to tackle climate change and reduce the industry’s environmental
impact.
The strategy commits the industry to reaching net-zero
emissions in its operations by 2040, and to reducing dramatically the
environmental impact of Scotland’s national drink in other areas.
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| The Scotch Whisky Association launches new sustainability strategy |
The revised sustainability strategy builds on progress made over the last decade which has seen distillers work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than a third. It covers four main themes; tackling climate change, using water responsibly, moving to a circular economy and caring for the land.
The strategy also commits the industry to work collaboratively
with supply chain partners and government towards a collective goal of a
sustainable dram from grain to glass.
The Scotch Whisky industry’s first Environmental Strategy
was launched in 2009, the first of its kind to cover an entire sector. Since
then, the industry has made significant progress against its original targets,
including a 34% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and a 22% more efficient use
of water.
Commenting on the news, Karen Betts, Chief Executive of the
Scotch Whisky Association, said: “The Scotch Whisky industry’s new
Sustainability Strategy is both ambitious and achievable. A huge amount of work
has gone into its development and is now going into its implementation. This is a great example of collaboration
within our industry and with other organisations in our supply chain, the
energy sector and in government.”
She went onto say: “Already a leading sector in reducing our
environmental impact, we are now committing to achieving net zero in our
operations by 2040, five years ahead of the Scottish Government’s target and 10
years ahead of the UK Government’s. We are also overhauling our water use and
land use to ensure their sustainability, and where possible deliver an
environmental net gain. And we are
committing that all new packaging will be reusable, recyclable or compostable
by 2025.”
The Scotch Whisky Association, has also set their sights on
this year’s COP26 conference in Glasgow, where the industry plans to showcase
its environmental work in the fight against climate change.
For full details and to read the strategy, visit: scotch-whisky.org.uk
Posted by Steve Rush