Spirit company makes green move to phase out whisky presentation boxes

A spirits firm has made the bold move to phase out its presentation boxes and cartons from across its whisky brands to help it reach net zero.

The move by Wemyss Family Spirits, which owns and operates Kingsbarns Distillery near St Andrews as well as Wemyss Malts, will result in the saving of more than a tonne of carbon each year.

The family firm hopes to become one of the greenest in the sector.

William Wemyss, who founded the business in 2005, believes the move is a milestone in the company’s journey towards true sustainability.

‘From day one we wanted to create a spirits business that acted with real stewardship and care for the environment.

‘That came from an innate sense of responsibility. For instance, 100% of the electricity consumed at our Kingsbarns and Darnley’s Gin distilleries and visitor centres come from our own hydro schemes.

‘We also try to source our ingredients as locally as possible, from Fife Barley for our whisky to botanicals foraged from the East Neuk shoreline and grown in our expanded cottage garden.

‘Removing cartons and boxes from our products will have a huge impact and was a logical next step for us to continue our green pathway.

‘Consumers are rightly demanding more sustainable products so we’re hoping they’ll be receptive to the decision.’

By-products of the processes at Darnley’s and Kingsbarns distilleries, such as spent grains, are repurposed for animal feed and other agricultural uses.

More recently, its sales team has moved to 100% electric car use.

‘It’s a hugely exciting time for our spirits businesses. We are now applying real focus on the next steps with the aim of reaching net zero ahead of both industry and UK targets,’ William explained.

‘We want to be recognised locally and internationally for being one of the world’s greenest spirits companies and we believe we’ve all the capabilities to be that.’

To find out more about Wemyss Family Spirits, visit https://wemyssfamilyspirits.com/