Prime Minister visits Diageo distillery to see how renewable energy is powering growth
The Prime Minister shows his support for the renewable energy revolution powering Scotch whisky export growth.
The Prime Minister visits the Cameronbridge Distillery in Fife. Photo: Crown copyright.
The Prime Minister today visited the Cameronbridge Distillery in Fife, where drinks business Diageo recently completed a unique renewable energy facility. The facility powers the distillery by recycling the natural co-products of distillation, and is a flagship for Diageo’s ambition to drive environmentally sustainable growth.
Cameronbridge Distillery is a key part of Diageo’s Scotch whisky production business. Scotch represents one of the UK’s outstanding economic success stories, with industry exports generating £135-per-second for the UK balance of trade in 2012.
The Prime Minister said:
Whisky is an iconic product with a rich heritage and a fantastic future. It is a truly global brand.
It was a real pleasure to see the Cameronbridge Distillery. It is at the cutting edge of the spirits industry, a world leader in embracing bioenergy technology and a major contributor to Scotland’s economy.
All those who work there should be proud of what they produce.
During the visit to the distillery, the Prime Minister met a group of Diageo apprentices who work across a range of engineering, scientific and craft roles at the distillery. He also hammered the bung – a ceremonial tradition in the Scotch whisky industry – into a cask of single grain spirit produced using renewable energy from the bioenergy plant. The Prime Minister’s cask will now be laid down to mature for 10 years, with a pledge to auction it to raise money for environmental good causes in the future.
Read more about the visit on Diageo’s website.