Sustainable At Our Core

At Brothers Drinks Co., we never shy away from the words ‘ground-breaking’, or ‘trail blazing’ and when it comes to our sustainability, we are no different. The 14th generation cider makers, have partnered with Avery Dennison and MCC to create a pioneering clear route for recycling of PET label backing in a never-before seen scheme in the UK. 

Trailblazing Clear Routes For Recycling

After 2 years of research and development, Brothers Drinks Co. are now the first cider makers in the UK to be successfully recycling the PET backing from labels on a mass scale partnering with Avery Dennison, the largest label supplier globally, to create what is known as AD Circular.

AD Circular enables used label liners from production that are notoriously difficult to recycle, to be recycled back into high-value items such as packaging for the home and personal care industry through a 3rd party. 

Brothers Drinks Co. are at the forefront of this program and have implemented AD Circular across all its sites for Brothers Drinks Co. production, and all contract bottling. The liner recycling program is a collaboration across various businesses and departments and was headed up by the Brothers Drinks Co. procurement team. The program has been implemented through a passion for sustainability across the businesses, and a drive to be able to produce real cider whilst working alongside the environment rather than against it.

To date, the program has enabled us to reduce our carbon footprint and save 56 tons of CO2 in 2022 since the enforcement of AD Circular.

James Showering, Procurement Manager, Brothers Drinks Co., said: “As a company we are really excited to be able to be at the forefront of such a ground-breaking program. Procurement has been incredibly important for every company in this process, navigating supply chain disruptions and mitigating risk. The development of Avery Dennisons’ AD circular UK scheme is a great example of this. It demonstrates how we are influencing the wider economy to be greener and more sustainable. We wanted to establish a clear route for recycling, one in which we know where the label backing goes and this collaboration brought about by MCC Label, uses the influence of purchasing to ensure all waste from procurement is reduced and recycled. Without the drive for sustainability from us and the wider team this scheme wouldn’t have come about.”

Orchards

Alongside this new scheme, Brothers Drinks Co. will offset their carbon footprint by approximately 3,000 tonnes of Co2 per year thanks to its 150 acres of orchard, situated a mere 5 miles from the cider mill which are havens for biodiversity, creating the perfect environment for pollinators and providing foraging sources for wildlife. 

Zero To Landfill

Brothers Drinks Co. has got a zero to landfill policy across the whole company and all sites, meaning all waste is segregated and handled to optimise the opportunities within the waste hierarchy.

Environmental Management Systems (SMS)

Brothers Drinks Co.has a full Environmental Management System (EMS) which is certified to ISO 14001: 2015. Meaning, they control the environmental impacts of activities, products, and services, and continually improve environmental performance.

Water

But Brothers Drinks Co. are not stopping there, investments into specialised, economical equipment mean that Brothers Drinks Co. can save approximately 110-120 cubic metres of water daily on their filling lines.

Carbon Desktop

Brothers Drinks Co. is also currently working towards the installation of a fully functioning carbon desktop to track their footprint alongside working towards the installation of solar panels across the sites to reduce the dependence on the national grid and fossil fuels for energy.