Gabe Cook adds up the benefits of long-term environmental stewardship to the environment
and to future generations

There are many words and phrases used today which, through their ubiquity and multiple interpretations, become misunderstood at best and background noise at worst. For me, ‘sustainability’ is very much one of these words. It is of increasing political and business importance, but what exactly does it mean? And how does it relate to the production of beer and cider? Let’s dive straight in.

What people know sustainability to mean best is environmental sustainability. You know what I’m talking about – be kind to bees, don’t belch out too much CO2, don’t pour arsenic into the rivers etc. But true sustainability goes so much deeper than this. It’s about the social and economic impact (mitigating the negative and enhancing the positive) on people as well as the impact on the planet.

Sustainable beer and cider production is becoming increasingly important, not only for producers, but also for retailers and consumers. Across the drinks industry, sustainability is shifting from a niche ethical concern to a mainstream commercial priority driven by climate change, rising costs and changing consumer expectations.

Importantly, sustainable production is not simply about marketing. Long-term environmental stewardship is becoming essential to the future of beer and cider itself. Protecting water supplies, healthy soils, orchards and agricultural biodiversity will be critical to ensuring future generations can continue to produce and enjoy high-quality drinks.

BEER’s particular challenges

The opportunities and challenges for beer and cider differ somewhat. For beer, there are some inherent challenges, mainly in the resource-intensive nature of its production. Brewing requires large quantities of water, heat, grain, packaging materials and transport logistics.

One of the greatest opportunities for sustainable brewing lies in energy efficiency. Heating the mash and boiling the wort use a lot of energy. This not only has a climate implication but, under the current geopolitical instability, a massive cost implication. There are many UK breweries that are on a path of carbon reduction or even attaining net zero status. Twisted Oak in Somerset and Pillars in London lean heavily on homemade renewable energy production and use, while Bristol’s Wiper & True has implemented a carbon capture scheme for its own fermentations.

Bea Renshaw, senior marketing & communications manager at Wiper & True, says sustainability is a fundamental part of how the brewery thinks about brewing. She says: “From investing in CO2 recovery technology to continually reducing waste and improving efficiency across our operations, we believe great beer should be made with respect for the resources it depends on.

“For us, sustainability isn’t a separate initiative – it’s an ongoing commitment to making better decisions for the long-term health of our business, our community and the environment.”

Brewing involves significant heating and cooling processes, making energy consumption a major operational cost. Investment in heat recovery systems, renewable electricity, anaerobic digesters and carbon capture technology can dramatically reduce emissions while also improving long-term margins. Larger brewers have led much of this innovation, but smaller craft breweries are increasingly adopting scaled-down versions of the same technologies.

Water stewardship is another major area of focus. Traditionally, breweries could use between four and eight pints of water to produce one pint of beer.

Progressive breweries are reducing this ratio through improved cleaning systems, water recycling and process optimisation. Great examples of this include Northern Monk in Leeds, which has reduced water usage by 28%, and AB-Inbev’s Magor brewery in South Wales, which has managed to achieve a remarkable 60% reduction in onsite water usage. Given growing concerns around water scarcity, particularly in parts of England, efficient water use is likely to become an even greater competitive advantage.

Packaging presents both opportunities and challenges. Glass bottles remain carbon intensive due to production and transport weight, while aluminium cans require high levels of energy to manufacture. However, cans are lighter and more recyclable, which can lower overall transport emissions.

The challenge, particularly for smaller brewers, is cost. Sustainable infrastructure often requires substantial upfront investment at a time when many independent breweries are already facing pressure from inflation, duty increases and tightening margins. There is also growing concern around greenwashing, with consumers and trade buyers becoming more sceptical of vague sustainability claims unsupported by measurable data.

Nevertheless, several UK breweries are emerging as leaders in sustainable practice. London’s Toast Brewing has built its entire business model around reducing food waste by replacing a proportion of malted barley with surplus bakery bread. Adnams has long been recognised for sustainability leadership, investing in energy-efficient brewing, lightweight bottles and local sourcing. Meanwhile, Harvey’s Brewery continues to champion traditional cask beer, local distribution and refillable systems that inherently reduce packaging waste and transport emissions.

CIDER a more natural fit

The sustainability story reads a little more easily and naturally for cider than for beer and it all starts in the orchard. Unlike annual crops, apple orchards are perennial agricultural systems that can support biodiversity, soil health and carbon capture over decades. All orchards, but particularly traditional orchards, provide valuable habitats for pollinators, birds and wildlife – they are a priority habitat under the UK Biodiversity Action Plan.

From an ecological and carbon sequestration perspective, these landscapes are hard to beat. But orchards’ sustainable credentials ramp up thanks to their positive impacts in rural areas. They provide a stable income stream for farmers and support regional apple growing industries with many ancillary jobs; critical in areas of rural economy. They also provide a great place to exercise, exert some mindfulness or even get married (like the author of this article).

All cidermakers can lay claim to the great fact that, as an industry, cider will be sourcing more of its raw material from the UK rather than from abroad, something that UK brewers could only dream of (apart from the water of course).

Many smaller makers take the sustainable orchards story even further, through the employment of regenerative agriculture principles. The likes of Ross-on-Wye Cider in Herefordshire and Burrow Hill in Somerset are renowned for their stewardship of the land.

From a production perspective, cider is, on average, much less energy and water hungry than beer. There is no need to heat the liquid pre-fermentation, and water doesn’t need to be added (although it invariably is by makers of scale). However, although cider production is generally less energy intensive than brewing, pressing, refrigeration, cleaning and packaging still carry substantial environmental impacts. Producers are investing in solar energy, heat recovery systems and more efficient processing equipment to reduce emissions and operating costs.

Thatchers Cider has invested heavily in water recycling, renewable energy and orchard biodiversity initiatives across its Somerset operations. The producer says sustainable practices have always been top of mind for the team at its Myrtle Farm headquarters. A spokesperson for the company says: “From generating 100% green electricity from our 3,500 solar panels, to reducing carbon emissions and water usage, through to regenerative farming practices; we’re focused on making a positive impact at every stage of cidermaking and helping to protect the landscape that has sustained our family business for four generations.”

Other big producers have also been vocal in this space. Heineken’s Inch’s brand plays heavily on sustainable credentials, such as biogas production from its spent pomace, while Westons has been able to secure its entire CO2 demand from the anaerobic digestion of its pomace.

Tim Williams, Westons head of supply chain, says supporting local agriculture, investing in rural communities and producing real cider from fresh juice is “the most sustainable path forward” for the long-term health of the category.

He says: “As the UK’s largest producer of cider made from fresh juice, we work closely with more than 200 growers. We source apples from within 50 miles of our mill, which helps to preserve traditional cider apple varieties, heritage orchards and the rural economy that depends on them.”

Packaging presents both opportunities and challenges for the cider category. Glass bottles remain closely associated with premium cider but are energy intensive to make and transport. Aluminium cans are growing rapidly within cider, due to lower transport emissions and strong recyclability credentials.

The majority of cidermakers are within rural communities and frequently act as instigators of community building and support. Sandford Orchards in Devon is a great example of this. It contributes to local causes, schools and sports as well as DNA-testing old varieties, conserving the culture and heritage of traditional cider.

Ultimately, sustainability in beer and cider is moving beyond marketing and into operational necessity. Brewers and cidermakers that can reduce resource use, strengthen supply chain resilience and demonstrate genuine environmental, social and economic responsibility are likely to be best positioned for the future.