Distell to reduce its 'footprint'
South African wine and spirits maker Distell is piloting the capture and re-use of carbon dioxide released during apple cider production at its manufacturing plant in Paarl, in a bid to reduce the impact of its operations on the environment.
"Distell is actively engaged with suppliers, wine industry bodies and academic institutions to reduce its own carbon footprint and help establish parameters for other producers to follow suit," the company said in a statement last week.
The new recovery facility, at the plant which manufacturers Distell's Savanna and Hunter's Dry brands, harvests and purifies the carbon dioxide to food grade quality, which is then used to carbonate Distell's ciders and ready-to-drink beverages.
Distell quality management and research director Dr Gert Loubser said the carbon dioxide recovery project not only enhanced the company's self-sufficiency, but also contributed significantly towards reducing the company's carbon footprint.
"We accord the highest priority to sustainable and eco-friendly production processes and this latest initiative is just one example of our widespread efforts to contain our impact on the environment," Loubser said. "However, central to any strategy designed to curtail greenhouse gas emissions is the capacity to measure output."
As such, Loubser said that Distell was closely involved with an international project to establish a globally accepted basis for calculating greenhouse gas emissions.
"Called the International Wine Industry Greenhouse Gas Accounting Protocol and Calculator, the system identifies and provides the basis for quantifying CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions that occur throughout the growing, production, packaging and transportation of wine," he said.
"At present, there is no universally accepted carbon footprint calculator that allows for meaningful comparisons or benchmarking in the wine industry. This project aims to provide a framework for global application, identifying what needs to be measured and how to do so."
The calculator measures, for example, the impact of nitrogenous fertilisers, the carbon absorption by vines, fuel use, refrigeration, fermentation emissions as well as carbon dioxide used in processing. It also takes into account the treatment of waste, packaging, freight and employee travel.
Joint effort
The protocol is being developed and tested by Provisor, an Australian consulting company, as part of a joint project between by the Australian, South African, New Zealand and Californian wine industries.
It will then be tabled with the World Resource Institute, the body that sets greenhouse gas calculating protocols for manufacturing industries worldwide, as well as with the Organisation Internationale de la Vigne et du Vin (OIV) and at the International Federation for Wine and Spirits (FIVS).
Loubser said the system included a stand-alone spreadsheet facility that would allow producers to calculate their carbon footprint according to agreed parameters.
A five-member South African team, three of whom are from Distell, are presently collaborating with research body Winetech and the local industry programme, Integrated Production of Wine (IPW), which has established a set of sustainable wine-growing and winemaking principles to which members can subscribe.
Loubser said the IPW would be carrying the spreadsheet calculator service on its website from February onwards. "Once in place, producers will be able to use the results to help reduce carbon emissions and also highlight progress in negotiations with trading partners," he said.
Many of the major British, European and US retailers are calling for their suppliers to provide material evidence of how they are reducing their emissions, with those adopting the most environmentally sustainable measures given preference in trading contracts.
Loubser added that Distell was also a shareholder and board member of the Glass Recycling Company, a non-profit venture involving glass manufacturers and bottlers, and endorsed by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism.
The company is also working with the University of Stellenbosch to ensure efficient effluent treatment across all its production sites, involving the production of not only ciders and wine, but also brandies, other spirits and ready-to-drink products.
"We have just installed an effluent water treatment plant at our Durbanville Hills cellars, equipped with an aerobic respirator that aerates and purifies all the effluent water to irrigation quality."
SAinfo reporter
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