New Orkney Distillery secures £246k to expand production

Construction for the £820,000 development is now underway at the distillery, with funding from HIE contributing towards the cost of equipment including mash tuns and copper whisky stills.

The project will see the addition of new buildings to house whisky malting and distilling equipment, as well as whisky casks. The existing premises will also be extended to house a new café, visitor centre and larger retail shop that allows visual access to the production process.

Graeme Harrison, area manager for HIE’s Orkney team, said: “Whisky and gin production is a key part of our food and drink sector in Orkney. It provides valuable employment and contributes to community resilience.  ​

‘Valuable addition’

“The development will help grow the business to a size where it can have a sustainable future. Orkney continues to experience a steady growth in volume tourism and this will be a valuable addition to our range of visitor attractions, particularly out with Kirkwall, so we are very pleased to support this venture.”​

New Orkney Distillery has built a sustainability element into the project, with the drinks maker exploring green technologies to lower carbon emissions in its drive to become net zero.

Plans include using spent grains from the distillery and food waste to produce electricity to provide power, heat and hot water. There are also plans to produce animal feed from the draff – the waste grains.

Building on success

Co-founder Stuart Brown added: “We’re delighted to be embarking on this development, which would not have been possible without the support of HIE. ​

“Building on our success with gin and vodka production is an important step in our journey, allowing us to increase sales both nationally and internationally while creating employment in the islands, attracting more visitors and having a greener footprint.”​

Once open this summer, the distillery will see the family begin production of their new whisky using Scottish barley and speciality locally grown grains from Orkney as well as increasing production of their existing gins, vodka and coffee liqueur.

Meanwhile, Inspired Pet Nutrition has invested more than £30m​​ to expand its technical capability, potential product range and capacity.