Beverage Dynamics is the largest national business magazine devoted exclusively to the needs of off-premise beverage alcohol retailers, from single liquor stores to big box chains, through coverage of the latest trends in wine, beer and spirits.
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with Patrón to share some of its innovations with the rest of the tequila industry. "There's varying degrees of what makes a spirit 'organic' or 'sustainable,'" says Cohen. "What it means to us is to focus on ways that we can limit the environmental impact of our tequila production. And, fortunately, other distilleries are engaged in similar practices, too. I think that will certainly grow to become common practice across our industry." Herradura, another tequila producer, has worked to offset its environmental impact over the past 15 years, including implementing a multimillion-dollar wastewater reuse and filtration plant, as well as renewable energy, composting and recycling programs. "Although we are seeing a growing demand for organic and sustainable consumer products in general – mainly from Europe, the U.S. and Japan – in the U.S. and Mexico, the sustainable spirits category is still a niche," says Valdemar Cantu, brand manager at Herradura. "It is exciting to see more sustainable spirit brands being introduced every year, but it remains a very small sub-category compared to non-organic spirits." A growing number of craft micro-distilleries are capitalizing on the consumer demand for sustainable spirits. By definition, a locally produced spirit can be a sustainable choice simply by virtue of not having been shipped from far away to store shelves. Catoctin Creek Distilling in Purcellville, VA, is not only certified organic, but makes an effort to source its ingredients locally. For Seen here are the Casa Herradura agave fields. Herradura is another tequila that has worked to offset its environmental impact over the past 15 years, including implementing a multimillion-dollar wastewater reuse and filtration plant, as well as renewable energy, composting and recycling programs. FAIR Quinoa Vodka's new bottle reduces the glass weight by 25%, which will have an impact on the carbon footprint of shipping from France to the U.S. In addition, the foil multi-component label was changed to a straight paper label. brands aiming for a larger distribution base, a focus on how ingredients are sourced can be a boon, as well. FAIR, as the name suggests, specializes in certified fair-trade ingredients, such as goji berries from Tibet, coffee from Mexico and quinoa from Bolivia. Because these are sourced from small, independent farmers, they tend to be grown sustainably, if not organically. "Fair-trade ingredients are grown by farmers who are dealing with the land on an individual basis. They are not mega farms that are growing products in the least expensive way possible," says Jack Bays, president of Bay Pac, which produces and markets FAIR. "The fact it's sustainable or organic or fair trade gets people to purchase it, but they won't continue to buy it unless it meets the quality of non-organic products." Sustainable Suds I f Coca-Cola has a sustainability initiative in place, then you can bet than big beer companies like Anheuser-Busch do. The macro-brewer claims to have reduced its water usage by more than a third, invested in biofuels and solar power, implemented comprehensive in-house recycling programs and introduced lighter, more eco-friendly packaging. Of course, these efforts are all relative when you consider that the company is responsible for close to half of all beer sales in the U.S. Craft brewers, on the other hand, can claim to be sustainable by virtue of being small, local companies that can source certain ingredients locally and distribute on a limited scale. While comprising only a fraction of the overall beer market, craft beer is a growing category that differentiates itself as a wholesome, high-quality alternative to a mass-produced product. A number of craft brewers have embraced low-impact packaging (i.e., cans) and some have gone further in their sustainability efforts, such as Brooklyn Brewery, which is the first New York City company to use 100% wind-generated electricity. The brewery also sends its spent grain to a New Jersey facility that turns it into pig feed. Brooklyn's co-founder Steve Hindy has said that the decision to switch to wind power came after the New York City blackout of 2003 when the outage affected the brewery's production and could have resulted in the loss of thousands of gallons of beer. If ever there was a reason to invest in sustainable practices, the sustainability of one's business is good one. Hippies may have started the green movement, but it's savvy and forward-thinking entrepreneurs who will surely carry it into the mainstream. I 56 • Beverage Dynamics • www.beveragedynamics.com • March/April 2013