Brown-Forman Corporation has responded to the on-going boom in the Tequila category with plans to expand Casa Herradura, the home of its Herradura Tequila brand.
The investment is set to weigh in at approximately US$200m, and construction is expected to begin next month.
The initial part of the project will include expanding the water recycling and treatment plant, before increasing distillery capacity, and making improvements to bottling, maturation and processing facilities.
Lawson Whiting, President and CEO of Brown-Forman stated that expansion will help the company meet increasing demand for its Tequila.
“The world’s growing taste for premium tequila is driving double-digit net sales growth* of our Herradura and el Jimador brands. We believe strong consumer interest in tequila will continue and we’re expanding our production capacity to meet this demand.
“This strategic investment will improve our production efficiencies and increase our competitiveness,” he added.
Herradura is known for its sustainable approach to spirits making, with Brown-Forman stating that less than one per cent of the solid waste created at the producer goes to landfill. Elisa Gutierrez, Vice President and General Manager of Casa Herradura believes the next investment will help enhance these capabilities.
“This multi-phase project includes adding to our distillery operations, bottling, maturation, and processing areas. This expansion is particularly exciting as it will also advance our existing waste-to-energy efforts with a new water recycling and treatment plant.”
This investment comes after IWSR found that Tequila’s volume had overtaken bourbon in the US.
Casa Herradura dates back to 1870, and was acquired by Brown-Forman in 2007. Herradura Tequila is distributed in Australia by Brown-Forman.