Rum maker JWN investing in fertiliser plant

Leading spirits company J.Wray & Nephew Limited, JWN, is investing US$25 million to set up a fertiliser plant that will utilise the dunder waste generated from its rum operation as feedstock.

The company plans to sell the fertiliser to local farmers, and prospectively to customers in the United States.

JWN has already identified a contractor, developer and operator for the plant that is expected to be commissioned by 2023, assuming construction begins this year. Planning approvals are still pending from the National Environment & Planning Agency.

The dunder treatment/fertiliser plant would become one of its “biggest” investments since its acquisition by the Europe-based Campari Group in 2012, said JWN Managing Director Jean-Philippe Beyer in a Financial Gleaner interview on Tuesday. Prior to this, the company’s last big project was the reimagining and expansion of the Joy Spence Appleton Rum Tour in St Elizabeth, which was renamed for JWN’s world-renowned master blender.

The new plant, which JWN said would process around 200,000 cubic metres of dunder, is intended to transform the dunder into fertiliser that can also be utilised as animal feed. The plant will be located at JWN’s New Yarmouth estate in the parish of Clarendon.

Dunder is a viscous by-product of the rum-making process. Currently, JWN tries to utilise the waste on its farmlands after diluting it, using a ratio of 10 parts water to one part dunder, Beyer said. But with rum production on the rise as markets around the world recover from the pandemic, JWN expects it will be generating more volumes of dunder waste and will need a conduit for its disposal.

The disposal of the effluent has been controversial for JWN in the past. For example, fish farm operator Algix Jamaica Limited took the spirits company to court in late 2015 over effluent discharged into the river from Appleton Estate. Campari reported in 2019 that it settled the suit with Algix for US$1.1 million.

The new facility will transform the dunder into a condensed molasses soluble – essentially, solid fertiliser.

“It is more concentrated, in a dry format, and will be able to be consumed by animals. It will be a finished product and also good for the environment,” said the spirits executive.

It also forms part of a wider effort to reduce waste across parent company Campari Group’s worldwide operations. The spirits giant is targeting the “safe return” of 100 per cent of the waste water generated by the group’s operations to their environs.

Through its sustainable initiatives, Campari’s businesses reduced water consumption by 15 per cent across the group year-on-year, mainly due, it said, to the termination of sugar manufacturing activities in Jamaica. “Consequently, the volume of water used per litre manufactured decreased to 18 litres,” Campari said in a market filing.

steven.jackson@gleanerjm.com