Living a Spirit of Commitment at our Single Malt Distilleries
Objective
Brown-Forman’s Single Malt Distilleries include the GlenDronach, Benriach, and Glenglassaugh. Our objectives are to reduce our carbon footprint, move to a circular economy, and advance sustainable packaging.
Description
- Reduce our Carbon Footprint
Starting in 2022, all electricity for our single malt distilleries will be from renewable sources. We continue to invest in energy efficiency projects at each of our production facilities, including LED lighting upgrades, building improvements, and enhanced energy use monitoring.
- Move to a Circular Economy
Distillery by products such as Draff and Pot Ale are recovered and reused for animal feed or energy production. Our Benriach Distillery is a member of the Combination of Rothes Distillers, where a bioenergy plant converts Draff and other biomass (like wood chips) into renewable energy for the area, and Pot Ale is converted into animal feed. Our production facilities collect all other waste materials for recycling or for energy recovery.
- Sustainable Packaging
As part of our sustainable packaging strategy, all package redesigns undergo a sustainability review comparing the current package to proposed changes, prioritizing sustainability improvements.
Partners
Scotch Whisky Association
Results
- Reduce our Carbon Footprint
We eliminated the use of fuel oil at our GlenDronach Distillery, replacing it with Liquified Petroleum Gas, improving energy efficiency and reducing carbon emissions by approximately 15%.
- Move to a Circular Economy
No waste materials at our Distilleries are sent to landfill.
- Sustainable Packaging
Our recent redesign of the Benriach package included an increase in recycled content and reduction in weight of our 700ml glass bottle.
Measurement & evaluation
As part of our overall commitment to strong environmental practices, Brown‑Forman holds itself accountable to global aspirations like the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The baseline for Brown‑Forman’s Sustainability Goals come from the 2020 fiscal year and reporting will follow the company’s fiscal year financial reporting.
Brown-Forman’s climate action progress is evaluated by CDP annually. Additionally, we report in accordance with GRI and SASB on broader sustainability topics, which are publicly available documents. Our progress is also reported in an annual ESG Scorecard and Annual Report, both available on our website.