New Diageo brewery 'vote in confidence' for Kildare
Pictured at the opening of the Littleconnel Brewery and during the tour was An Taoiseach Micheál Martin ,Sir Dave Lewis Diageo CEO, Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon, Colin O’Brien, Global Head of Beer Supply, Diageo, Ewan Andrew, President of Global Supply & Procurement and Chief Sustainability Officer, Diageo and Gráinne Wafer, Global Category Director Beer, Vodka, Liqueurs and Convenience Photo: Julien Behal
NEWBRIDGE was in the national spotlight yesterday as drinks giant Diageo officially opened its new €300 million Littleconnell Brewery.
The launch event saw Taoiseach Micheál Martin join Diageo Chief Executive Sir Dave Lewis to formally unveil the facility, which has been developed on a 40-acre site in Littleconnell in under 18 months.
The brewery represents a major economic boost for Kildare, having supported around 650 construction jobs during development while also creating around 54 permanent highly skilled positions.
Speaking at the official opening, Taoiseach Micheál Martin described the development as “a powerful vote of confidence” in both Ireland and Kildare.
When giving a brief history of Kildare Guinness Founder, Arthur McGuinness, he said: “Kildare is once again at the heart of the brewing process. This will strengthen Kildare’s food and drink hub and increase the county’s profile.”
The Taoiseach then called the county a “key manufacturing hub” in Ireland, and celebrated the sustainability of the Littleconnell brewery for using 100% renewable energy.
“This is a best practice example,” he said. “It’s setting the gold standard.”
Diageo CEO Sir Dave Lewis called the new site “the most sustainable brewery in the world” which will produce a range of beers including Rockshore, Harp, Smithwick’s and Kilkenny, as well as licensed brands including Carlsberg, supplying both Irish and international markets.
Diageo also confirmed plans for a further estimated €400 million investment at the Newbridge site over the next three years through the development of a second brewery dedicated to producing Guinness and Guinness 0.0, named ‘Brewery 2’, but only for the moment, as the Taoiseach comedically insisted on “finding a better name” in his launch speech.
Brewery 2, will be dedicated to the production of Guinness and Guinness 0.0 and will more than double total site capacity, supporting the global growth of Guinness.
Littleconnell Brewery has been designed with sustainability at its core and operates using 100% renewable electricity.
Diageo said the facility is expected to avoid up to 15,000 tonnes of carbon emissions annually compared to a similar-scale brewery, and this is due to the adoption of circularity throughout the whole brewing process, which see’s less waste and more materials being used again and again.
The Littleconnell development forms part of Diageo’s near €1 billion capital investment programme across Ireland between 2020 and 2029, reinforcing the company’s long-term commitment to brewing in Ireland, with Kildare now playing a central role in that future growth.
A special tour of the facility was put together for attendees, which brought people through the entire process of beer manufacturing from grain to gulp.
Kildare Nationalist attended the last tour of the day after the Taoiseach himself, as he was seen blending into the brewery atmosphere in a high vis jacket.
Attendees were reminded by tour guides to mind uneven surfaces and pipes that jut out from the ceilings after a few “incidents” of banged heads during previous tours.
No banged heads here though as we moved through the state-of-the art facility that had the strong scent of hops running throughout.
The tour showed that at each stage of the brewing process, sustainability is at the centre, with spent grains going on to be used for animal feed, leftover yeast to be used for pig feed or to be stored and used again for more beer making.
High pressure hot water is used during the first few stages of brewing – a more eco-friendly solution than traditional steam methods used by breweries all over the world.
A lot of CO2 is produced as a byproduct of the process which is known to have harmful effects on the environment. However, any CO2 made during the process is designed to be recovered, purified and used once again. The same goes for heat generated during the process, which is sent to energy tanks to be reused and waste water, which is purified and used again.
It was an exciting day for Newbridge as it became a base for an incredible new manufacturer, and for the rest of the country for marking a step towards making “splitting the G” synonymous with sustainability.
