Carlsberg Marston’s Brewing Company’s (CMBC) has a range of sustainability initiatives aiming to reduce the environmental impact across key areas of its value chain: farming, manufacturing, and logistics. Through these key projects, on trade customers benefit from products with a lower carbon footprint, water use and made with sustainably sourced ingredients:
- Regeneratively farmed barley
- Manufacturing upgrades to save water and plastic
- Trialing electric HGVs
Regenerative Farming
CMBC aimed to work with UK barley farmers to grow barley using practices that improve soil health, boost biodiversity, and reduce emissions. Farming contributes 18% of CMBC’s value chain emissions. The initiative’s goal was to use this barley in brewing Carlsberg Danish Pilsner initially, then scale to the full portfolio.
In 2023, CMBC partnered with 23 British farmers to grow nearly 700 tonnes of barley grown with regenerative practices, enough to brew over 9 million pints. This initiative impacted 1,736 hectares of British farmland. In addition to the practices used, the barley variety, developed at the Carlsberg Research Laboratory, offers quality and energy reduction benefits, allowing for a 30-minute reduction in boiling time during brewing. CMBC aims to source all barley for Carlsberg Danish Pilsner using regenerative practices by 2027 and all UK-brewed brands by 2031.
CMBC collaborates with Ceres Rural to develop and refine the UK Regen Barley protocol, co-developing it with farmers and the wider industry. The findings from this project can also help shape future regenerative farming practices and inform better policy-making.
Manufacturing Upgrades
Significant investments were made in the Northampton brewery, including a £10 million upgrade in early 2024, which introduced a new can filler, laser can coder, and Snap Pack packaging machine. These upgrades aimed to reduce water usage, minimize plastic in packaging, and lower electricity consumption.
The new KHS can filler, Ferrum seamer, and Domino Laser Can Coder have brought significant improvements in efficiency and safety. These upgrades are expected to reduce water usage by around 10%, approximately 18 million liters annually, equivalent to more than seven Olympic-size swimming pools. The Snap Pack initiative aims to reduce CMBC’s plastic usage by up to 76% across four- and six-can multipacks.
These investments are the beginning of CMBC’s journey towards achieving Net Zero by 2030 and a 2.0 hl/hl water ratio. Continued improvements in energy and water usage will further enhance sustainability in brewing operations.
Logistics Improvements
Since 2022 a proof-of-concept trial has been in operation with two electric HGVs at the Cardiff and Thurrock depots to demonstrate the potential to replace diesel-fueled road miles with electric vehicles.
The trial has shown positive results, with each vehicle capable of delivering over 10,000 pints daily and replacing 19,000 diesel-fueled road miles annually. While suitable for shorter routes, CMBC is evaluating other depots for potential expansion of the electric fleet.
While the electric HGV trial is promising, CMBC recognizes that a full electric fleet is not yet feasible. Ongoing monitoring of sustainable fuel technologies and upgrading the existing fleet to more efficient diesel engines and exploring hydrogen technologies will be crucial for future logistics planning.
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