Diageo

I'm incredibly honoured to share that I was elected on 10 July 2024 as the first female Master of the Worshipful Company of Brewers in its 461-year history. The Brewers’ Company, one of City of London’s historic Livery Companies, has been a cornerstone of our industry and plays a crucial role connecting brewers across the industry and supporting education institutions and research for the sector.   This role is particularly meaningful to me as it highlights how far we've come in an industry that was once predominantly male-dominated. When I began my career, I was often the only woman at industry events. Today, it's inspiring to see so many talented women shaping the future of brewing. It is my honour to follow in the footsteps of former Diageo and Guinness colleagues who have been elected Master of the company, including: Edward Guinness, Peter Lipscome, Stephen Wingfield Digby, Sir Hugh Beaver and Tony Mair.   I would like to extend my congratulations to Diageo’s Nuno Teles and Colin O’Brien who were also elected Liverymen.   It is traditional to celebrate the election of a Master at Court Lunch in Brewers’ Hall in London and this event was also held on Wednesday 10 July. We celebrated with "Arthur's Last Ale," a special brew recreated from a recipe in a Brewers Ledger from 1796 by Pete Simpson and the talented team in the Guinness Open Gate Brewery in Dublin. We also raised at toast to King Charles III with a one of a kind ale called “The Lost Barrel”. Originally brewed for the opening of the Guinness Open Gate Brewery back in 2017, the team filled Guinness' Special Export Stout into Bulleit Rye Whiskey barrels. One of the fine barrels was thought lost and it was my great good fortune that earlier this year it was found! With an ABV of 14.8%, The Lost Barrel is a masterclass in barrel maturation: the silky texture is punctuated with a bourbon character, imparting a sweet, vanilla-infused aroma that complements the deeply roasted malts.   It is my ambition to continue the Brewers’ Company’s efforts to increase funds for the Company’s General Charitable Trust which enables us to make valued contributions to our beneficiaries, and to champion our role within education and in supporting research that enables the future of our sector.   #BrewingHistory #WomenInBrewing #IWorkForDiageo #WorshipfulCompanyOfBrewers

Yesterday our CEOs put their weight behind our new responsibility strategy. We met in the heart of the champagne region, a place whose very architecture, economy and landscapes have been shaped by this industry for centuries. The context was last month’s landmark WHO report, which shows that deaths linked to alcohol fell by over 20% around the world from 2010 to 2019. While there is much more to do, this represents significant progress in the UN’s strategy to tackle the harmful use of alcohol. We agreed our new priorities for building on this success through the International Alliance for Responsible Drinking (IARD), including how we can further harness the resources of IARD and its members to support the UN 2030 goals. A huge thanks to Philippe Schaus for hosting us so magnificently at Moët Hennessy, and to chairman Alexandre Ricard and IARD’s CEOs for their support.

We’ve kicked off the start of our global roll out of ecoSPIRITS. We’re piloting the distribution of brands including Smirnoff, Gordon’s, Captain Morgan and Ketel One in a keg-style ecoTOTE, beginning in my home country, Scotland, before Ireland, the Netherlands and Dominican Republic. The partnership builds on the ongoing trial of ecoSPIRITS by Diageo Indonesia that started in 2022. Fast-growing, reusable spirits packaging is a fantastic example of sustainability progress, which challenges how we package our products.  And this is just the start. Over the next three years, we’ll be taking ecoSPIRITS around the world to an expected 18 markets - disruptive innovation at scale. Watch the #circulareconomy in action below. #sustainability #lowcarbon #lowwaste

Last month, we trailed our first #Baileys paper-based bottle and wanted to share how it went. We took our innovative Dry Molded Fibre bottle from Factory to Festival to see how it resonated with consumers. 🏭🔜🍶 We embraced progress over perfection to get the bottle to consumers and conducted 310 surveys and 37 in-depth interviews across the two-day festival.📊 We learnt lots including: 💡Demand for more #sustainablepackaging is high. 86% thought it mattered that the bottle was made of paper and over 60% of the respondents stated they’d buy it when available, showing it’s a desirable pack. 📈 💡As we look toward future packaging initiatives, we need to show more clearly the #sustainability messages of our packaging, 69% of consumers did not read that the bottle was made of paper. We also found that discussing the bottle’s recyclability resonated more than its carbon footprint. ♻️ 💡With continuous improvement in mind, respondents told us they’d prefer a resealable lid, so they have the option to take the bottle on the go or add a small amount to their coffee. ☕️ We're committed to a more #sustainablefuture and know we can't do it alone. 🤝 The Baileys Original Irish Cream Liqueur mini format (80ml) was trailed in #partnership with PA Consulting as part of our ongoing packaging initiatives. Stay tuned! We're excited to continue testing, learning, and sharing our progress and findings. 🌎 Find out more here: https://lnkd.in/eeCxfTG6 #Baileys #Innovation #Sustainability