Stellar Winery wins Ethical Business category at Drinks Business Green Awards 2013

Thursday, 25 April, 2013
Stellar Winery
The Drinks Business Green Awards ceremony took place in London on Tuesday. Stellar Winery scooped the Ethical Business of the Year award in recognition of the company's commitment to community development and to its greatest asset: the people who work there
The Drinks Business Green Awards 2013 winners were announced yesterday at a ceremony at The Ivy restaurant in London. The Drinks Business is the leading European drinks trade publication.

The Drinks Business Green Awards is the world’s largest programme to raise awareness of green issues in the drinks trade and recognise and reward those who are leading the way in sustainability and environmental performance.

The judges voted Stellar Winery Ethical Company of the Year, a huge endorsement of the effort the company has invested in its employees, producers, farmworkers and surrounding communities. The award was accepted on behalf of Stellar by its UK agent, Ehrmanns Ltd.

Initiatives large and small in the areas of training and education, sport and recreation, improved nutrition, primary health care and worker transport have slowly but surely made an impact on the Stellar Winery Multi-Estate and beyond.

The Stellar Foundation, a non-profit organisation established in 2011, manages projects aimed at community development. Apart from the initiatives at Stellar Multi-Estate, the Stellar Foundation initiated and still supports a holiday feeding and activity scheme for children in the nearby town of Klawer. A second project, in partnership with the Klawer community and the Department of Agriculture to establish residential vegetable gardens, is well on its way.

The contribution of Stellars agents in its markets abroad has been key to the outcome of these initiatives. Their encouragement and focused Fair Trade premiums have often meant the difference between failure and success of a particular project, most of which are launched on a shoestring budget.
“The support that the Stellar Foundation has received from customers and sponsors has been our lifeline, and this award is a wonderful acknowledgement of the progress we’ve made so far. It tells us that we’re on the right path and motivates us to reach even higher”, says Irene Dell, Stellar’s Social Development Officer and hands-on manager at the Foundation,

Community buy-in is also essential. Farmers and farmworkers on the Multi-Estate and volunteers in Klawer have shown their determination when it comes to taking the initiative and running with it. The vegetable gardens on Madiwodo and Bet-El farms and the Klawer feeding scheme are great examples of communities taking ownership of projects.

Stellar Winery is a certified organic wine producer in the Olifants River Wine Region. The Stellar Winery Multi-Estate, comprising the winery and independent grape producers, is certified for Fair Trade and Social Responsibility by the IMO/Swiss Bio Fair for Life programme. The Multi-Estate workers own 26% of the company.

The full report on the awards ceremony is available at http://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2013/04/winners-announced-of-db-green-awards-2013/