With this worldwide pioneering pilot project, HEINEKEN Spain becomes the first company to brew beer from barley with a low carbon footprint thanks to 'Impact Zero' fertilisers
- The results of the first sowings show a 62% reduction in the carbon footprint per tonne of barley and increased productivity for the farmer.
Madrid, 15/09/2023 – HEINEKEN Spain’s commitment to sustainability and its ‘Decidedly HEINEKEN’ roadmap directly involve agriculture, a sector that currently accounts for 30% of the brewery’s carbon footprint. For this reason, it is working with leading partners such as Fertiberia to support the transformation and ecological transition of Spanish farmers with a pioneering project, which aims to contribute to decarbonising the cultivation of malting barley. The alliance between the two companies has made it possible to use the first low-carbon, Impact Zero fertilisers produced with green hydrogen to replace natural gas.
Promising results
After sealing their alliance in January, the first sowings with these fertilisers began in Andalusia with very promising results, which are now in the process of certification, in a particularly difficult year for the countryside. In addition to reducing the carbon footprint of each tonne of barley by 62%, the farmers participating in this pilot project have seen their production increase, harvesting 900 kg more per hectare to a total of 2,400 kg.
Following these results, the two companies are already working on the next phases of the agreement to significantly expand its use to more barley crops.
“We are working to reduce CO2 emissions across our value chain by 30% by 2025 and thus advance our ambition to reach net zero by 2040. Hence the importance of our alliance with Fertiberia to produce the first low-carbon fertiliser, and with it, the first barley of sustainable origin,” said Etienne Strijp, President of HEINEKEN Spain.
Javier Goñi, CEO of Fertiberia, commented: “In this project, Grupo Fertiberia brings its Impact Zero crop nutrition solutions, which contribute to reducing the carbon footprint thanks to the use of green hydrogen and which also include another series of biotechnological innovations to ensure maximum agricultural and environmental efficiency. We also provide the know-how of our environmental technologies centre to optimise their application in the field. The ecological transition is a challenge of such magnitude that it requires agreements between those who are leading it, and this is a great example of which we are really proud.”
Thanks to this alliance, brands such as Heineken®, Cruzcampo, Amstel and El Águila will be the first to bring this agricultural innovation to the Spanish market: beers made from malting barley with a low carbon footprint.
* Video in Spanish
