Scotch Whisky Maker Uses Whisky Waste To Fuel Trucks

Scotch whisky maker Glenfiddich has begun converting its delivery trucks to run on low-emission biogas made from waste products from its own whisky distilling process as part of a "closed loop" sustainability initiative.

Using a unique technology developed by its parent company William Grant & Sons, the Glenfiddich distillery at Dufftown in north-eastern Scotland converts its production wastes and residues into an Ultra-Low Carbon Fuel (ULCF) gas that produces minimal carbon dioxide and other harmful emissions.

Fuelling stations have been installed at the distillery, and the biogas is now powering specially converted trucks that handle the transportation of the Glenfiddich spirit at all stages of its production at the Dufftown distillery through to bottling and packaging, a journey that covers four William Grant & Sons' sites in central and western Scotland.

Local road users will soon get used to seeing trucks bearing the proud statement: 'Fuelled by Glenfiddich - turning whisky waste into Ultra Low Carbon Fuel'.

Stuart Watts, William Grant & Sons' distilleries director, said: "Glenfiddich is appreciated around the world as a unique single malt whisky, which is the result of generations of pioneering craftsmanship and concern for the long-term sustainability of the spirit.

"It has taken more than a decade for Glenfiddich to become the first distillery to process 100% of its waste residues on its own site, then to be the first to process those residues into biogas fuel to power its trucks, and finally to be the first to install a biogas truck fuelling station supplied by our on-site renewable energy facility."

The initiative will reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by over 95 per cent and other harmful particulates and greenhouse gas emissions by up to 99 per cent when compared to diesel and other fossil fuels.

Each truck will displace up to 250 tonnes of CO2e annually, which has the same environmental benefit as planting up to 4,000 trees every year - the equivalent of displacing natural gas, a fossil fuel, from 112 households.

The 'Fuelled by Glenfiddich' breakthrough is an example of the brand's actions to reduce the environmental impact of its production process. It is one of a range of sustainability activities taking place across William Grant & Sons' wider business in line with the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA)'s roadmap to achieve targets set out under the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals, which will be a main focus of the UN COP26 Climate Change Conference in Glasgow this November.

The SWA's four main areas for industry action are: tackling climate change by having net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040; moving to a circular economy by making all packaging reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025; hitting responsible water use targets by 2025; and caring for the land through the active conservation and restoration of Scotland's peatland by 2035.