2Sustain

On Monday, BusinessGreen published a wonderful one-page Q&A with Jonathan Adnams, executive chairman of Adnams brewery, in Southwold, UK. His family has been in the beer-brewing business since 1872, so when Adnams has something to say about sustainability, I’m all ears.

About 15 years ago, the company sat down to establish a list of brand values, and chief among these was “a belief that any business that wants to operate for the long term needs to build respect from customers, neighbors, and the environment,” Adnams says. That’s a commitment that’s neatly summed up on the company’s website:

“Beer has been brewed in Southwold for 600 years. We’d love to be here for 600 more. To make this happen, every aspect of our company needs to be sustainable: the way we do business; how we work with our communities and our impact on the environment.”

Over the years, Adnams’ dedication to sustainability has had a significant impact on its operations. For instance:

• In 2006, the company opened a distribution center in Raydon that was the first industrial building in the UK constructed entirely from sustainable materials. Special features include hemp-lined building blocks and a green roof.

• In 2007, Adnams made headlines, again. The company’s new brewery in Southwold became the first brewery in the UK to include a full energy recovery plant. 90% of the steam produced during the brewing process is captured and reused for heat throughout the facility. Adnams says that has saved the company 31% on gas bills.

• By reducing the weight of its bottle by 34%, Adnams has saved 415 tonnes of CO2 each year, the equivalent of the transport-related emissions of its entire sales force.

• All of which helped position the company to produce Adnams East Green, the UK’s first carbon neutral beer, verified by the Carbon Trust. (Nice example of sustainability as a strategic differentiator.)

Adnams closes the interview by offering advice about maintaining sustainability when you’re facing short term economic pressures.

“It has to start at the top and you need the support of the shareholders,” he says. “If they just want to maximise quarterly profits then they are not going to go on this journey. And I know I keep saying this, but it has to be embedded within the whole organisation and needs buy in from everyone so environmental considerations are included in all projects. So many initiatives fail when you bring in a CSR director and they try to overlay sustainability onto existing plans.”