Use natural resources

Pernod Ricard uses natural resources to produce its wines and spirits: grapes, grains, beets (used for alcohol production), sugar cane and aromatic plants. To protect these natural resources, the Group follows the principles of sustainable agriculture and supports the protection of biodiversity.

Promoting sustainable agriculture

Sustainable agriculture represents a “global approach to operational and impact management that aims to go beyond compliance with regulations, and to promote the positive aspects of agricultural practices on the environment and limit their negative effects, without jeopardizing economic profitability.” (Source: Ministry of Agriculture and Fishing).







Sustainable agriculture is founded on the following principles:
  • preservation of soil fertility over the long term,
  • prevention of soil erosion through appropriate practices,
  • reduction of risks of environmental pollution from fertilisers by
    • balancing fertilisation (adapting frequency and quantity to plant needs),
    • using phytosanitary products only when necessary and justified,
  • promotion of economic and balanced management of water resources (source: Ministry of Agriculture and Fishing).


These principles are systematically applied to the Group’s own vineyards (over 10,000 hectares around the world) and have been extended to Pernod Ricard suppliers.

  • In New Zealand, a production waste recycling procedure has been implemented. Composted marcs are now reused in the vineyards. In 2006-2007, 1,300 tonnes of marcs (residual waste from the vinification process) were composted and reused as fertiliser. As a result, demand for mineral fertilisers was reduced by 280 tonnes while demand for organic fertilisers was reduced by over 2,000 tonnes.
    Pernod Ricard local subsidiary, Montana, also uses environmentally-friendly biological (pheromone-based traps) or physical (netting) methods to protect vineyards from insects and birds.

  • In Armenia, wine growers at the Yerevan Brandy Company, Armenia’s leading brandy producer, can call on the advice of a team of seven agronomists to optimise plant health care treatments and fertiliser use. In recent years, this subsidiary has worked to find new uses for solid waste, which is now recycled, and distillation by-products (stillage). Previously disposed of through the public waste network, stillage is now used to convert the region’s saline soil into arable land and serves as an organic fertiliser for local fields.

  • In Argentina, traditional irrigation techniques are gradually being replaced by drop-by-drop irrigation, saving around 6,000 m3 of water per hectare each year.

  • In Livramento, Brazil, treatment stations for product preparation have been equipped with holding pools to prevent soil contamination. More efficient planting methods have also been implemented to reduce erosion.

  • In France, Cognac Martell is paying special attention to wine-growing effluents. Special cleaning areas for agricultural equipment have been set up and adapted for biological wastewater treatment.

Maintaining biodiversity

The example that best demonstrates Pernod Ricard’s commitment to maintaining biodiversity is the Group’s cultivation of the great yellow gentian.

The great yellow gentian, which grows wild in alpine regions, takes 10 years to reach first bloom and can live for as long as 50 years. The plant is an essential ingredient in Suze production, giving the aperitif its characteristic bitterness.

In the 1970’s, studies were conducted to determine if the plant could be cultivated. Successful cultivation would protect the alpine meadows and
 
reduce commercial use of the wildflower. As a result of this research, Pernod Ricard now meets 50% of its needs through the direct harvesting of 70 hectares of cultivated gentian.