London-based travel retail specialist Sustainaholics has collaborated with Tourvest Retail Services to list five sustainably-made spirits brands on High Life Shop.
Two Drifters rum, Oxford Rye whisky, gin brands Cooper King and Hyke, and Black Cow vodka have all launched on the British Airways online platform and are available for pre-order on selected routes. Miniatures will also be offered inflight from 1 March.
Sustainaholics was founded in 2022 by David Mills, whose 20 years of travel industry experience include five as Board Director and CFO at travel retail innovator Retail inMotion. Mills’ mission is to promote sustainability and ethical consumerism in the travel industry through a portfolio of independent sustainable brands.
He said Sustainaholics is working with travel retailers and operators in the UK and beyond to offer a “coherent, customer facing dedicated sustainability proposition”. Further listings are expected this year.
“Sustainaholics aims to make the discovery of innovative independent premium sustainable drinks brands a standard part of the travel experience,” Mills added.
“Most travellers are aware that travelling creates carbon emissions and want to see stakeholders take positive actions and create solutions-orientated partnerships.
“By encouraging airports airlines and cruise-ships with a serious commitment to sustainability to create positive new partnerships with authentic sustainable brands, we offer a coherent sustainability-led customer retail proposition that meets the growing customer demand for sustainability.
“We are so proud to launch the travel industry’s first sustainable spirits’ range with one of the most famous and prestigious airlines in the world and couldn’t think of a better airline to partner with to share these amazing sustainable spirits with passengers all around the world.”
‘Feel good’ Two Drifters is a carbon negative rum distilled in Devon, England, by a certified B Corp family company. Its zero waste production is powered by renewable energy and carbon capture specialists in a ‘cradle to grave’ approach to emissions.
Founders and husband and wife team Russ and Gemma Wakeham aim to capture 1% of the UK rum market by 2025 and to have 1% of the global rum market by 2030. “We aim to achieve this without harming the earth by producing all of our rum with a carbon negative footprint,” they said.
The Oxford Artisan Distillery’s Oxford Rye whisky features sustainably farmed heritage grains from biodiverse organic farms within 50 miles of Oxford while zero-waste Cooper King gin is made with local ingredients at a self-built Yorkshire distillery powered by renewable energy.
Each bottle removes 1kg of CO2 more from the environment than it produces. The family business donates 2.5% of all revenues to replant woodland.
Hyke gin features supermarket surplus and vineyard grapes otherwise destined for waste and the sustainable Black Cow vodka is made in West Dorset using what is left over from grass grazed cows’ milk after making cheese.
It is described as the “world’s first pure milk vodka” which is “so smooth you can drink it till the cows come home”.
