Chivas Brothers will invest more than £60 million in sustainability and energy-saving technologies over the next three years as part of the Pernod Ricard brand’s carbon-neutral commitments.
Chivas Brothers’ latest financial commitment aims to help it achieve carbon-neutral distillation by 2026, the company said in a statement.
The funds are earmarked for use in cutting its energy and carbon footprint by installing electric boilers and heat recovery technologies.
The announcement comes on the heels of the Scotch whisky maker’s recent move to openly share its heat recovery technology learnings for industry-wide benefit. The technology has already led to a 53 percent reduction in carbon emissions at its Glentauchers distillery, Chivas Brothers said.
“The historic highs we’re seeing across our strategic brands signal the success of our premiumization strategy which has enabled Chivas Brothers to outperform the market,” Jean-Etienne Gourgues, Chairman and CEO of Chivas Brothers, said in a statement.
Chivas Brothers has been experiencing surges in various global markets, particularly in Asia and North America. In Asia, the company’s growth rate was 21 percent, fueled by India, South Korea, Japan, and Greater China.
North America has also shown impressive gains, recording an 8 percent growth in a highly competitive market, with the US and Canada contributing equally to the rise.
Among the company’s strategic brands, Chivas Regal saw a 25 percent increase in global growth, dominating markets like India and Japan. The brand has been acknowledged by IWSR Drinks Market Analysis as the leading 18-year-old blended Scotch globally in both volume and value for the calendar year 2022.
Ballantine’s also saw an uptick of 13 percent, outperforming the total Prestige and Prestige Plus Scotch category. Royal Salute showed a growth rate of 32 percent, ahead of the Prestige category in both value and volume. Specialty single malt brand Aberlour and The Glenlivet also witnessed increases of 11 percent and 9 percent, respectively.
The company credits its financial prosperity to its emphasis on high-quality, premium products, allowing for investments in advanced sustainability measures and strategic inventory management.
By lowering its carbon footprint, Chivas Brothers aims to create a business model that is both economically profitable and environmentally sustainable, which ensures a dependable supply of its Scotch whiskies worldwide.
“Our highest growth of the last decade reinforces our position to shape the future of sustainable Scotch while continuing to meet demand,” Gourgues said. “We have fast-tracked a number of sustainability initiatives to meet our own ambitious targets and remain committed to supporting the industry in ushering in this new era — as we demonstrated earlier this year by making our heat recovery findings open source.”
As Chivas Brothers continues to blaze trails in the whisky industry, its commitment to fostering both sustainable practices and market growth has positioned it as a leader in shaping the future of Scotch whisky. The company was awarded ‘Scotch Whisky Producer of the Year’ at the International Wine & Spirits Competition for consecutive years and has an export presence in 150 global markets.
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