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*The London International Wine Fair (LIWF) has added a whole new dimension this year as top beverage logistics and drinks business executives are actively pursuing new, cooperative, measures to address climate change. *

At yesterday’s 'Confronting Climate Change' seminar, arranged by the drinksbusiness and leading logistics provider JF Hillebrand, key speakers and panellists from JF Hillebrand, Tesco, Waitrose and Adnams gathered to openly discuss how their companies and others should continue to progress with keeping ecological issues at the forefront of the industry’s agenda.

JF Hillebrand Managing Director David Mawer opened the seminar by going directly to the heart of the issue: ”Collectively, we are here because we know that the drinks industry needs to demand that there be a global environmental standard and profiling behaviour for carbon emissions. As fair warning to us all … disorganised, substandard or unregulated initiatives within the industry could be extremely detrimental to what we wish to accomplish.”

In his speech, Mawer added that in order to minimise confusion and misdirected ecological efforts within the industry: “There is an urgent need to establish a common methodology for calculating carbon emissions. This is the first major challenge … If, like me, you believe that destiny is a matter of choice – then let’s take action together for the better.”

At the end of the seminar, JF Hillebrand and the Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA), in a joint partnership to effectively address Mawer’s industry call to action, announced that they have recently joined forces to create a <1> that works out CO2 emission results by incorporating all aspects of a bulk wine shipment. According to WSTA, the Transport Carbon Calculator addresses the UK trade’s concerns about carbon emissions, by providing the user with an accurate guide to the CO2 emissions.

Sticking firmly with the theme of cooperative efforts, Dan Jago, Tesco’s Director of Bulk Wine Shipments (BWS), said that it is necessary for the industry to act with “consistency and continuity” in order to best confront today’s environmental issues. Jago, and other panelists, emphasised product packaging as one area that the industry should place effort on improving.

Dr Andy Wood, speaking on behalf of the brewer Adnams, offered a case study where his company worked to decrease the actual glass weight of their beer bottles by 34%. He noted that reduction in packaging weight results in lowered carbon emissions throughout production and shipping.

Dr Wood reminded all those in the room of the primary reason his brewery believes in cooperative efforts throughout the industry to confront climate change and put environmental issues at the very top of the wine and drinks business list: “If there’s no planet … then there’s no beer.”

<1>: http://www2.jfhillebrand.com/ToolsandResources/CarbonCalculatorTool/tabid/452/Default.aspx