Innovative Brewery?s green initiative

Wold Top Brewery has announced plans to reduce the business?s carbon footprint with a two year tree?planting programme.

Owner of the brewery Tom Mellor explains ?The effects of climate change, or global warming, are well documented and the growth rate of carbon dioxide emissions is alarming.? Between 2000 and 2005 the annual growth rate was more than 2.5 per cent, whereas in the 1990s it was less than one per cent per year. We want to do something, however small, to try to redress the balance.?

The tree planting initiative will see the creation of a four acre woodland area populated with native species like beech, field maple, whitebeam and hornbeam over a two year period.

The tree planting complements the other ways that the Mellors help to sustain the environment around the farm-based brewery. They have an ongoing programme of hedge planting, surround crops with two metre margins to encourage wildlife biodiverstity and maintain 35 acres of species rich chalk grassland that is home to varied flora and fauna. In addition, they use recycled and recyclable materials wherever possible and all of the by-products of the brewing process are recycled ? the spent hops make great garden mulch and the local pigs appreciate the spent grain!? They encourage recycling by promoting reusable cotton bags and by providing strong, reusable plastic bags when selling beer at farmers markets and festivals.

Wold Top Brewery brews a range of award-winning ales using home grown malting barley and hops and chalk filtered water drawn from the borehole on the farm. It is thought that they are one of only a handful of breweries (if not the only one) that grows and sources its main ingredients on site.