We've been awarded GOLD in Green Tourism!

As part of our commitment to sustainability, we recently had our first grading under the new GreenCheck assessment scheme, managed by Green Tourism, the UK’s leading sustainable tourism certification scheme.

Julie Trevisan-Hunter who led our team through the process said “Working with the three pillars of PEOPLE, PLACE and PLANET, the platform has given us a real focus and drive for improvement.  Our success is down to the fact that all departments and teams within our business have actively embraced the challenge with absolute commitment.  Receiving the Gold award has given us a real boost to continue to take even greater steps in these important areas.”

To say we’re over the moon is an understatement!

Green Tourism Award with Maycon and Ben
Berries from Pittormie Farm

Pictured left: Berries from Pittormie Farm.

 

We caught up with Wendy Neave, Head of Events & Hospitality: “Every day we work hard with the relationships we have with our suppliers to bring the freshest of ingredients to our menus. Our relationship with Pittormie Farm in Fife is a long-standing partnership and our customers enjoy the freshest of local fruit and vegetables that have been picked or harvested within the same 24 hours that they arrive with us. We love the fact that our produce does not travel miles and is farmed locally.”  

Members of The Scotch Whisky Experience bike to work

Pictured right: Our keen cyclists who bike to work.

 

Ross Morris is our Head of Facilities & IT:

“We’ve worked hard for a long time at monitoring our energy, water, waste, carbon and chemicals usage, so it’s great to be officially recognised that we’re doing a good job. As we strive to become ever more efficient, we’ll continue in our quest to find more ways to further reduce our impact on the environment.”

Scottish Made sign within the Scotch Whisky Experience whisky and gift shop

Our retail team is also working hard to source more sustainable shopping choices and experiences for our customers.

While there’s lots still to do, we’re confident we’re off to a good start, as Lucy Hawk-Walker, our Head of Retail, explains:

“Sustainability and locality are a key focus when selecting new products for our ever-expanding retail range. We now have a growing selection of gifts made from recycled water bottles, old whisky casks and repurposed whisky bottles, to name a few. We’re also proud to support local artists and suppliers, and love sharing their creations and stories with our guests.”

You can read our sustainable shopping blog here.

Giving back to our local, national, and global communities is core to the business ethos and DNA of The Scotch Whisky Experience, and at each of these levels, we support charities related to PEOPLE and PLANET.

We’re also a fairly eco bunch! We recently asked staff how they travel to work, and were pleased to discover that over 90% cycle, walk or use public transport! Pictured above are some of our keen cyclists.

Keep an eye on our socials and website for up to date #gtbs news, as we continue to look at what more we can do to become a greener, cleaner and more environmentally friendly business.  You can find out more through the following links:

Our Environmental Policy

Our Green Tourism news and actions 

Sustainable Scotch distilleries 

Corporate Social Responsibility 

Our charities 

Slainte!