Accolade Wines Europe announces carbon neutrality for core UK portfolio

Accolade Wines Europe has announced its core branded portfolio, including Hardy's, Mudhouse, Jam Shed, Banrock Station, Echo Falls and Kumala, has been certified carbon-neutral.

The company aims to make the rest of its portfolio carbon-neutral by the end of 2020.

This year the company has introduced lighter-weight bottle for Echo Falls and Hardy's and implemented more recyclable packaging across its Wine on Tap formats. It has also invested in solar panels at an Australian vineyard and in 2019 installed a wine turbine at its European manufacturing site.

Caroline Thompson-Hill, managing director for Europe at Accolade Wines, commented: "We're very proud to announce that our Accolade Wines UK-packaged core branded portfolio is carbon neutral. We know that there is demand for greener products, with 62% of consumers saying they want to buy from sustainable brands, and the wine category is no different. Companies must act on their carbon footprint for the sake of the planet and we want Accolade Wines Europe to set a positive example that we hope the rest of the industry will follow.

"Sustainability is a core focus for us, and our state-of-the-art supply chain allows us to reduce our carbon emissions and ensures we have a platform to build our business on in the years ahead. Working with ClimateCare means we can also offset all the carbon emissions we can't yet reduce, and so take full responsibility for our carbon footprint. We look forward to completing the work with the Carbon Trust on certification for the remainder of our business later this year."

Vaughan Lindsay, chief executive officer at ClimateCare, said: "We work with forward-thinking organisations to turn their climate responsibilities into positive outcomes. Our trademark Climate+Care approach helps organisations take a smart approach to addressing their environmental impacts by offsetting their carbon emissions through projects which also support sustainable development."

The carbon-neutral footprint analysis is certified by the Carbon Trust, an independent organisation that aims to accelerate the move to a sustainable, low-carbon economy.

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