Luis Ayala, Editor of "Got Rum?" magazine, Rum Consultant and Founder of The Rum University.
Luis Ayala close up with snifter of rum
Luis Ayala, Rum Consultant
Rum and Sustainability
“Going green” seems to be in the minds of more and more businesses these days. Consumers are becoming increasingly aware of their carbon footprint and that of the companies they purchase goods from. Implementing environmentally-sound practices in a business is expensive and rarely leads to increased productivity, so it is easy to understand why most enterprises have been slow to adopt these practices.
What are some of the benefits that can be gained in the rum industry from sustainable practices?
• Capturing the carbon dioxide (CO2) released during fermentation can result in an additional revenue source for the distillery (CO2 can be sold to soft drink manufacturers to carbonate their beverages).
• Capturing methane from the spent wash can provide the distillery with a fuel source for their boilers, which produce steam and can also produce electricity. In some cases the electricity produced from burning this methane exceeds the consumption of the distillery and can be given back to the community.
• Spent wash can also be used as a feed additive for cattle or as a fertilizer for sugarcane fields.
• Sugarcane bagasse is a common source of fuel for boilers, but can also be processed to extract fibers that are then used in the production of textile fabrics, even paper for labels and cardboard for boxes.
These are only a few of the imaginable ways in which distilleries can make their operations more sustainable. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that as part of the creation of their distillery in the USVI, Diageo offered to run Cruzan’s waste water through their state of the art purification system. Kudos to Diageo for their long term vision. Hopefully this example will inspire other companies with large R&D budgets and proprietary technologies to do the same.
While there is no evidence today that consumers in general will favor purchasing a rum only because of its sustainability, only those companies that invest in green practices now will be positioned to take advantage of the increased awareness in the future.
2012 is full of potential and possibilities. Let’s work together to make it the best year yet for the rum industry.
Happy New Year!
Luis Ayala, Editor and Publisher