Irish Distillers Announces Plan for Carbon Neutral Midleton Distillery

Whisky distillery stills in Ireland near Midleton Distillery. (Image via Jameson/Pernod Ricard)

Irish Distillers, Pernod Ricard’s Irish whiskey subsidiary, has announced plans to make its Midleton Distillery carbon neutral by 2026. This is a major investment, totaling €50 million ($52.3 million). The upgrade will equip the distillery with cutting-edge emissions-reducing technology. Once complete, Midleton will be Ireland’s first and largest carbon-neutral distillery.

We are delighted to announce a landmark sustainability investment of €50 million to fund projects aimed at transforming Midleton Distillery into a carbon neutral operation by the end of 2026

In a prepared statement, Irish Distillers discussed the final phases of its sustainable energy transition plan. The company will introduce renewable sources of energy, including green hydrogen and biogas, to power the distillery and replace natural gas usage. To achieve this goal, Irish Distillers has partnered with local experts at EI-H2 to explore opportunities for sourcing sustainable renewable hydrogen.

Thank you to @Entirl, @UCC and all our partners for supporting us on this journey pic.twitter.com/qXwvOcLo69

— Irish Distillers (@IrishDistillers) June 13, 2022

Additionally, the company has carried out extensive research in partnership with MaREI, the SFI Research Centre for Energy and Climate and Marine, hosted by University College Cork, to determine the biomethane potential of the by-products of distillation and design the required anaerobic digestion process necessary to produce biogas.

Commenting on the announcement, Tommy Keane, Operations Director at Irish Distillers, said: “With the climate crisis at a critical juncture, Irish Distillers is committed to reducing our environmental impact across our entire value chain and an area that we cannot ignore is how we power our distillery”

“While the technical challenges the team face in transforming our operations at Midleton Distillery to become carbon neutral are considerable, we believe that with the help and support of our partners at home and across the globe, this is possible. We are committed to doing the right thing for our industry, people, and communities. Together, we can make a real impact.” Keane concluded.

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