Ardagh Group, Glass – North America, a division of Ardagh Group (ardaghgroup.com) and a leading producer of glass containers for the food and beverage industries in the United States, debuted its 1.5L Bordeaux wine bottle, compliant with the Liquor Control Board of Ontario’s (LCBO) new lightweight glass strategy for wine products.

In advance of the revised LCBO standards, effective April 1, 2016, Ardagh Group is already manufacturing the new 1.5L Bordeaux bottle, which weighs in at a mere 670 grams (24 ounces).

In an effort to reduce the carbon footprint of products while also providing ergonomic benefits through reduction in overall case weights, in late 2014 the LCBO announced new national standards that wines packaged in 1.0L bottles must not exceed the maximum glass bottle weight of 550 grams (19.4 ounces) and 700 grams (24.7 ounces) for 1.5L bottles. Compliance standards for 750ml wine bottles remain unchanged at 420 grams (14.8 ounces) and 460 grams (16.2 ounces) for products packaged in Hock bottles.

“Being a global leader in reducing beverage alcohol container waste has been good for the LCBO, our customers and employees, and most importantly, the environment,” says Carolyn O’Grady-Gold, director wines at LCBO. “The introduction of our lightweight glass strategy for 750ml containers close to over a decade ago has resulted in a reduction of seven million kilograms of waste and a 20 percent reduction in greenhouse gas generation. We look forward to seeing continued environmental and other benefits with the introduction of our 1.5L container standard.” 

In addition to the 1.5L Bordeaux bottle, Ardagh Group currently offers a collection of ten (10) 750ml bottles and one (1) 1L bottle currently in compliance with LCBO standards. These bottles are developed and designed to maintain high quality and enhance consumer appeal, while lessening the overall environmental impact by requiring less energy demand, transportation impact and CO2 emissions. 

“Ardagh Group continually works closely with our customers to provide the highest standards in glass wine bottles,” says Bob Parise, vice president of wine sales for Ardagh Group’s North American Glass division. “The new 1.5L Bordeaux bottle aligns well with our company’s sustainability initiatives, providing a vision to continue designing high quality, premium glass without changes in feel and appearance.” 

For more than 125 years, Ardagh Group has been producing innovative glass bottles in the U.S. As the leading glass supplier to the U.S. wine market, Ardagh Group has three manufacturing facilities strategically located in the heart of the major North American wine regions. 

Ardagh Group will showcase its new 1.5L Bordeaux bottle at the Unified Wine & Grape Symposium at the Sacramento Convention Center.