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Case Study:

Eliminating On-Premise Single-Use Glass Bottles

validation launch scale environment

A global alcohol beverage company engaged Pilot Lite to manage the implementation of ecoSPIRITS™, a low-carbon, low-waste distribution technology for the on-premise consumption of its premium spirits.

The challenge

ecoSPIRITS is a closed-loop system that eliminates on-premise single-use glass bottles, significantly reducing packaging waste in the supply chain.

The system features a 4.5L reusable glass vessel equipped with accurate pouring technology called the ecoTOTE™. ecoTOTES are refilled at a nearby plant, while the company’s cloud-based software provides tracking and sustainability reporting. A single ecoTOTE eliminates the equivalent of a full pallet of single-use glass during its lifetime.

By using the ecoSPIRITS system, venues can reduce their carbon footprint associated with packaging, distributing, and transporting single-use glass products. The average carbon footprint of a single spirit or wine glass bottle is 550g of CO2 emissions. Only a third of the 70 billion single-use glass bottles discarded in 2020 were recycled. Recycling glass uses 75 percent of the energy required to produce new bottles.

The closed-loop system also delivers improved ergonomics and handling while enabling hospitality establishments to reduce their physical glass and cardboard waste by 95 percent.

The solution

Pilot Lite designed a process to deploy the ecoSPIRITS system for the client’s alcohol brands, addressing all key launch workstreams, including technical and operational requirements, partner and TPO setup/logistics, routes to market, and sell-in, engagement, and communication materials at venues. We also provided ecoSPIRITS with technical and subject-matter expertise to meet the client’s global standards.

Pilot Lite also supported ecoSPIRITS in refining their LCA analyses to reflect client requirements and improved modeling supporting the technology.

The client is currently trialing the ecoSPIRITS system in 30 venues across Ireland before rolling it out nationwide. The company intends to scale the low-carbon, low-waste distribution technology across its global distribution network.