Sustainable distilling

By Daniela Walker 25 : 10 : 2016 Whole-system Thinking : Trash-to-Table : Food Waste

UK – Greensand Ridge Distillery is a new distillery in the Weald of Kent that focuses on sustainability in every aspect of production.

Greensand Ridge’s sustainable efforts include running on renewable energy and using food waste for its products
First products to be launched are a London Dry Gin and a limited-edition raspberry eau de vie, using blemished raspberries

When opening a new micro-distillery, founder Will Edge wanted to create a business that was ethical from the ground up. ‘For me, sustainability isn’t a hook on which to sell product. It is an absolute requirement for how a business should be run ethically,’ Edge tells LS:N Global.

Greensand Ridge Distillery is run on 100% renewable energy and aims to eliminate waste by recycling and re-using packaging, plastic and pallets used in the process. All used botanicals are composted while any liquid waste is processed by an in-house biodigester.

Food waste is integral to Greensand Ridge’s product line. The limited-edition Raspberry Ghost is an eau de vie that uses imperfect raspberries that couldn’t be sold to a supermarket. The distillery is also beginning the process on another product for its core line, an apple brandy. ‘Apples are ideal for us because there is always fruit that goes unused,’ says Edge. But it is a model that allows for new products based on the season. He adds: ‘Perhaps next year there will be a glut of plums and a limited-edition barrel of plum brandy will emerge.’

The Big Picture

Trash-to-Table products are just one way to integrate sustainability into a production line. Key to Whole-system Thinking is to look at every facet of production and figure out how to make it better.