Brown-Forman

Measuring the environmental impact of Finlandia Vodka

Finlandia Vodka is a premium vodka brand wholly owned by the Brown-Forman Corporation, and produced in partnership with the state-owned Altia Corporation in Finland. Brown-Forman asked Best Foot Forward to assess the full product lifecycle impacts of Finlandia Vodka. This analysis is part of a holistic approach to assess the sustainability performance of Finlandia Vodka and builds on the ‘Harmony with Nature’ diagram currently used by the brand.

Best Foot Forward, with the help of Brown-Forman, engaged Finlandia suppliers and looked at all of the processes involved in creating Finlandia Vodka. The study accounted for the amount of energy, water and materials required to create the product and transport it to consumers, as well as the waste arising from each of these steps. The carbon impact of all of these different processes was measured, to identify the most carbon intensive components of the product.

The study compared 700ml and 750ml bottles, with two different grades of vodka (37.5% and 40% alcohol by volume), delivered to four different countries: Australia, Germany, Poland, and the USA. The study also examined the carbon footprint of the proposed new bottle design which will be used for Finlandia Vodka in the future. In addition to looking at carbon, Best Foot Forward analysed the water consumption and waste resulting from producing the vodka.

Brown-Forman aims to reduce its environmental impact. By knowing where it is having the most impact – product carbon hotspots – it can think about how to tackle these and reduce its carbon footprint.

Rob Kaplan, Brown-Forman’s Manager of Corporate Responsibility, said “This report has been very well received and we maintain our great respect for your integrity and data crunching skills. Excellent work!”