Whyte and Mackay are delighted to have won the Sustainable Use of Raw Materials award at the Footprint Drinks Sustainability Awards for our Grow Scotland Initiative.
This is a momentous achievement for our Grow Scotland programme and the brilliant local farmers that made this initiative possible.
Our Winning Project: Grow Scotland
Grow Scotland focuses on supporting our farmers to grow their businesses sustainably, which in turn will help Scotland flourish, while also reducing the environmental impact of the grain we use by reducing transport emissions.
The initiative has succeeded in building collaborative relationships with local farmers near our Invergordon Distillery, creating a sustainable and future-proofed supply chain. These relationships with the local farming community allow us to share knowledge and learn together. This was about more than simply securing Scottish wheat; it was about building a lasting relationship with our local farming community.
“There is something incredibly special about being able to see the wheat we use to make our award-winning whiskies growing in the fields around our Invergordon Distillery. Not only does sourcing locally mean we’re able to make a positive impact on the environment and local economy, but it also gives our farmers a real sense of pride to know exactly where their wheat is going”
Rachael Clark, Sustainability Lead
Through completing extensive trials and research at our distillery in Invergordon, we were able to make the swap to locally sourced wheat and become far more efficient in the use of both raw materials and energy. This is because we can produce more litres of alcohol from local wheat than we could from imported maize while using the same amount of energy. This means we use less energy per tonne and per litre of alcohol. This increases the site’s capacity and therefore potential to further lower its Kwh/Litre of spirit.
The move to locally sourced wheat also means we are no longer relying on importation across 9000 miles by ship and 540,000 miles of road reducing our carbon emissions by ~3,000 TCO2e p.a., contributing to a reduction in our scope 3 emissions.
In 2022, we will source more than 50,000 tonnes locally, resulting in more than £10 million in investment in the local Scottish economy. This ensures we have reliable access to high-quality wheat for our distilling process, and we can support the farmers to grow their businesses sustainably.
The Grow Scotland initiative will continue to grow over the coming years, and with this so will the benefits, and being recognised in this way was a momentous occasion for the team.
“We were delighted to be able to celebrate this brilliant achievement with other key figures in the drinks industry who like us, are working hard to ensure a more sustainable future.
At Whyte and Mackay sustainability has and always will be a key part of what we do – our whisky is a product of our beautiful natural environment, so we know how important it is we work hard to preserve that environment so we can continue doing what we do best – making award-winning whiskies that are enjoyed around the world!”
Yasmin Winslade, Communications Manager
A huge thank you to Footprint for a wonderful evening celebrating the brilliant strides being made towards a more sustainable drinks industry.