The Prince's Mayday Network

Eco-efficient brewer

Introduction

Adnams leads its industry with carbon-neutral beer and an eco-efficient distribution centre and brewery that reduce waste, emissions and costs.

Process

What and How:

As part of a strategy to reduce emissions across the business, Adnams, a medium-sized brewer, has set industry leading standards for energy efficiency, water usage, effluent control and recycling of all materials by engaging its employees and taking progressive steps toward eco-efficiency.

Adnams’ latest development is its carbon-neutral beer, made in a new eco-efficient brewery opened in March 2008. The new brewstream recovers 100% of the heat from each brew to reheat the next; a process that reduces the amount of the gas needed during the brewing process and can also brew larger batches in less time, resulting in an overall reduction in gas usage. An innovative lightweight bottle designed by Adnams in 2006 reduced the weight of the 500ml beer bottle from 445g to 299g.

In 2006, Adnams designed and built an innovative new distribution centre using a combination of hemcrete walls, a green roof, rainwater catchments and glulam wood beams. Due to the insulating properties of this combination, and the buffer spacer at entrances, the centre does not require any mechanical cooling or ventilating systems. Active systems such as movement sensors and a solar collector gas boiler contribute to the eco-efficiency of the centre.

Impact

New distribution centre saves £49,000 per annum, using 58% less gas per square metre and 67% less electricity per square metre compared to the old warehouse Use of lime and hemp instead of concrete saved 600 tonnes of CO2 from being emitted Lightweight bottle reduces glass use by 624 tonnes per annum and CO2 by 415 tonnes per annum Achieved the maximum 80% tax rebate on Climate Change Levy.