Diageo Australia’s new drinks brand Reeftip Drinks Co. is staking a claim in the growing spiced rum category while meeting corporate responsibility goals in its partnership with the Coral Nurture Program.
Diageo Australia head of innovation Hayden Abercrombie told Food & Drink Business there were a number of factors that led to the new brand’s inception.
“Consumer desire to buy local has never been stronger, rum is starting to gather momentum – it’s now outrunning gin growth in the UK, and we saw an opening of a premium product in the spiced rum segment,” Abercrombie said.
He added that Diageo also has the scale to meet rising societal expectation that companies and brands will play a more active role in securing better outcomes for the planet.
“The Bundaberg distillery, where we’re producing Reeftip, is at the southern end of the reef, so it was an obvious choice to us to invest in helping the reef for generations to come.”
Diageo has already made significant environmental inroads at the distillery, with the site running on 100 per cent clean energy, zero waste going to landfill, and all wastewater recycled back into irrigation for the local sugar cane industry.
Reeftip Drinks Co will donate 10 per cent of profits to the Coral Nurture Program.
“We know that two thirds of consumers are more likely to buy a product or brand they know is produced by a company with more overt and tangible sustainable initiatives. We also can’t rely on governments to do all the work, companies like Diageo need to use their scale and ability to impact for positive change.
“But for us, the most motivating factors in developing the brand was making a premium product that tastes good and contributes to the ongoing thriving health of our greatest natural icon.
“It not only tastes good but does good,” Abercrombie said.
(Image: Coral Nuture/Christian Miller)
The Coral Nurture program is a partnership between scientists and tour operators to boost coral abundance at economically and ecologically high value Great Barrier Reef locations, with the goal to increase the resilience of reefs and reef stakeholders to environmental change.
It boosts coral stocks through propagation and out-planting of areas where healthy coral cover needs to be boosted or retained. It uses a special device (Coralclip) that quickly fixes coral to the reef, which enables planting at a scale never previously possible.
“We connected with Coral Nuture at the brand development stage. We didn’t want to greenwash the project or channel money into a faceless organisation without really knowing where the money was going,” Abercrombie said.
Diageo called in University of Technology Sydney professor and Coral Nurture Program co-founder David Suggett to educate the team on the risks to the reef. Abercrombie said it was the simplicity and potential scale of Coral Nature that appealed.
Suggett said: “With the support of Reeftip Drinks Co., we’ll be able to help more people play a part in securing a better future for Australia’s reefs. The Coral Nurture Program has shown us that if we work together and create communities committed to action, we can bring about real and lasting change – including a more sustainable experience of the reef.”
“It is a perfect partnership, we can supercharge their vital work,” Abercrombie said.
Reeftip Drinks Co. is launching with three ready to drink Aussie spiced rums:
- Ginger, Lime & Soda – a premium blend of Reeftip’s Aussie spiced rum with hints of ginger and lime mixed with sparkling water.
- Pineapple, Lime & Soda – notes of pineapple, lime and soda combined with Reeftip’s spiced rum.
- Mango, Coconut & Soda – a tropical and tasty blend with hints of mango and coconut mixed with Reeftip’s spiced rum and a splash of soda water.
“The distillery has a team of world class distillers and rum stocks for us to work with. There is a huge amount of expertise and liquid reserves to tap into. The spiced rums are the first cab off the rank, but we absolutely see the possibilities of pushing the boundaries in the market,” Abercrombie said.
The hard seltzer phenomenon was an example of what Diageo sees as possible for spiced rum and Reeftip. “The market segment is growing ahead of total beverage alchohol and rum. We think there is further opportunity to create vibrant contemporary drinks that will expand the appeal of dark spirits,” he said.
Diageo’s testing showed broad appeal across genders with the brand targeted to metro-based 25-35 year olds.
“Bundy does a great job for us in our heartland Australia market, Reef Tip will open the door to a younger, urban-based consumer.”
A spiced rum full-strength bottle serve launch will follow in October.
