Pernod Ricard’s venture capital fund, Convivialité Ventures, has taken a minority share in circular economy startup Ecospirits.

Pernod Ricard joined a $10 million Series A funding of Ecospirits, along with New York-based circular economy investment fund, Closed Loop Partners, and several Asian and global investors.

The tech startup is focused on low carbon, low waste distribution systems for the wine and spirits industry.

In March 2022 Pernod Ricard was one of the first global drinks companies to partner with Ecospirits for the distribution of some of its brands in Hong Kong and Singapore. Absolut vodka, Beefeater gin, and Havana Club rum are transported in bulk and delivered to venues in a fully reusable 4.5-litre glass container.

The new funding will be used to scale up its hardware, software and Internet-of-Things (IoT) research and development programme, expand operations in key markets worldwide and grow its regional customer and engineering teams in Miami, London, Singapore and Shanghai.

Stéphane Longuet, co-founder and managing director of Convivialité Ventures, said: “We are very pleased to participate in this investment which will help develop a company offering such an innovative solution to our industry, by drastically reducing waste and carbon emissions.”