Glenfiddich Initiative to go green
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| Image: Whisky.com |
Making whisky results in the creation of a beverage that many truly adore. However, it also results in the creation of tonnes of waste. One prominent whisky maker has now turned their whisky waste into fuel for company trucks.
First reported by Reuters, whisky maker Glenfiddich, one
of the world’s premium whisky makers, has begun converting its delivery trucks
to run low-emission biogas that’s made out of waste generated from its own
distillation process, as a part of a closed-loop sustainability initiative.
The biogas is extracted from the residues of whisky
production using a technology developed by William Grant & Sons. This
low-carbon gas produces only minor emissions. It has taken more than a decade
for Glenfiddich to become the first distillery to process 100 percent of its
waste residues on its own site, then to be the first to process those residues
into biogas fuel to power its trucks. These renewable energy breakthroughs in the
whisky industry come as new distilleries are being set up across Scotland. In
effect, they scale up decarbonising benefits of this closed-loop process.
"Fuelled by Glenfiddich - turning whisky waste
into ultra low carbon fuel" is emblazoned on the three trucks that have
been specially converted for running with this biogas. Special petrol stations
have been set up for this, starting with one on the grounds of the Glenfiddich
distillery. The gas is produced through anaerobic digestion when
bacteria breaks down organic matter and produces biogas along the way.
Fuelling stations have also been installed at Dufftown
distillery in north-eastern Scotland. They make use of a technology developed
by parent company William Grant & Sons that converts in production waste
residue into ULCF or Ultra-Low Carbon Fuel gas.
According to Glenfiddich, the biogas cuts CO2 emissions
by 95 percent compared to diesel and other fossil fuels while also drastically
reducing harmful greenhouse gases particulate matter by 99 percent. Transport
from the production facilities to filling and packaging units is almost
climate-neutral. The route includes four William Grant & Sons locations in
central and western Scotland. Compared to fossil fuels, each truck saves up to
250 tons of CO2 annually, which corresponds to a similar benefit for the
environment as planting around 4,000 trees a year.
Earlier, the company would sell the grains leftover
from malting to produce high-protein cattle feed but by using the waste to
develop biogas enables the company to fully recycle all of its products. The
company has revealed that its whisky-based fuel is powering three
specially-designed trucks that are made to run on this biogas. The vehicles
converted from truckmaker Iveco actually are actually designed to run on
liquified natural gas.
The Scotch Whisky Association's Schedule
For Sustainability
William Grant & Sons are working hard to implement
the schedule drawn up by the Scotch Whisky Association SWA to achieve the
United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. The four main areas of SWA for
the industry are combating climate change by ending all greenhouse gas
emissions by 2040, sustainability of reusable or recyclable packaging by 2025
be made compostable while also achieving responsible water consumption goals
and maintaining the land through the active conservation and restoration of
Scotland's peat ecosystem by 2035.
Working in line with the Scotch Whisky Association
(SWA)’s roadmap to tackle climate change by reducing its environmental impact,
the ‘Fuelled by Glenfiddich’ initiative is just one of William Grant &
Son’s sustainability activities.
Along with its GHG emission reduction by 2040 goal, the
company intends to restore and conserve Scotland’s peatland by 2030. With its
targets being a focus of the UN COP26 Climate Change Conference in Glasgow this
November, the technology will be made available across the Scottish whisky
industry.
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