Absolut overhauls production of its iconic bottles

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Absolut Vodka has announced that it has invested in a hydrogen-fired furnace to produce its iconic bottles, the first global spirits brand to move to a partly hydrogen energy-fired glass furnace.

It’s an important milestone in becoming completely CO2 neutral by 2030 allowing the vodka producer to reduce the carbon footprint of its bottles.

The Swedish distiller has signed an agreement with Ardagh Glass Packaging in Limmared, a subsidiary of Ardagh Group.  The hydrogen will be produced onsite at Ardagh using renewably sourced electricity and should reduce Absolut Vodka’s carbon footprint from glass by 20%.

This means a full-scale change of the continuous production of Absolut bottles for all markets globally beginning in the second half of 2023.

Stéphanie Durroux, Chief Executive Officer of The Absolut Company, says, “The glass manufacturing industry is on a transformative journey, and the world can’t wait for the perfect solution. A bold and innovative approach is needed to accelerate radical change that will help solve the significant sustainability challenges that all glassmakers and buyers of glass face.”

Bo Nilsson, Managing Director of Ardagh Glass Limmared AB, added: “Our industry needs to be less reliant on fossil fuels and transition at pace to using more green energy. By investing in this new technology, we are embarking on a journey to reduce the carbon footprint of our glass packaging. There are challenges with such innovation, but we are committed to being an early mover in futureproofing our glass manufacturing operations world-wide.”

In a parallel move, their owner Pernod Ricard group has become a member of Glass Futures, a not-for-profit research and technology organisation connecting the industry and academia to build a Global Centre of Excellence for glass to create sustainable, low carbon bottles.

Category: News, Sustainability
Tags: Absolut Vodka, Ardagh Glass Packaging