The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) is a

trade organisation A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association, sector association or industry body, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific Industry (economics), industry. An industry tra ...

that represents the

Scotch whisky Scotch whisky (; sco, Scots whisky/whiskie, whusk(e)y; often simply called whisky or Scotch) is malt whisky or grain whisky (or a blend of the two), made in Scotland. All Scotch whisky was originally made from malted barley. Commercial distil ...

industry. The Scotch whisky industry is an important part of the

Scottish economy The economy of Scotland is an Open economy, open mixed economy which, in 2020, had an estimated nominal gross domestic product (GDP) of $205 billion including oil and gas extraction in Scottish waters. Since the Acts of Union 1707, Scotland's ...

, and particularly the Scottish

export An export in international trade is a good produced in one country that is sold into another country or a service provided in one country for a national or resident of another country. The seller of such goods or the service provider is an ...

market.

Structure

The main office of the SWA is based in the

Lauriston Lauriston ( ) is an area of central Edinburgh, Scotland, and home to a number of significant historic buildings. It lies south of Edinburgh Castle and the Grassmarket, and north of The Meadows public park. Lauriston is the former locatio ...

area of

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

(Quartermile Two, 2 Lister Square, Edinburgh EH3 9GL).

Membership

Members include (among others): *

Beam Suntory Beam Suntory, Inc. is an American-founded, Japanese multinational company that produces alcoholic beverages. It is a subsidiary of Suntory, based in Osaka, Japan. It is the third largest producer of distilled beverages worldwide, behind Diageo ...

Chivas Brothers Chivas may refer to: * Chivas Regal, a blended Scotch whisky produced by Chivas Brothers *C.D. Guadalajara, commonly known as Chivas, a Mexican men's association football club based in Guadalajara, Jalisco *C.D. Guadalajara (women), commonly known ...

Diageo Diageo plc () is a Multinational corporation, multinational alcoholic beverage company, with its headquarters in London, England. It operates from 132 sites around the world. It was the world's largest distiller before being overtaken by Kweich ...

* Drambuie Liqueur Company *

Highland Distillers Highland Distillers was founded in 1887 by the Robertson family. In 1970 Highland purchased Matthew Gloag & Son, producers of the Famous Grouse blended whisky and acquired The Macallan single malt Scotch producers in Speyside, in 1996. Highland a ...

John Dewar & Sons Dewar's () is a brand of blended Scotch whisky owned by Bacardi, which claims the brand's "White Label" to be the top-selling blended Scotch in the US. Dewar's is also the world's most awarded blended Scotch whisky with more than 1,000 medals ea ...

John Haig John Thomas Haig, (December 15, 1877 – October 23, 1962) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served as parliamentary leader of the Manitoba Conservative Party in 1921–22. Born in Colborne, Ontario, Haig received his BA from t ...

* John Walker & Sons *

Scotch Malt Whisky Society The Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS), founded in Edinburgh in 1983, is a membership organisation which bottles and sells single cask, single malt whisky Single malt whisky is malt whisky from a single distillery. Single malts are typica ...

The Edrington Group Edrington (legally The Edrington Group Ltd.) is a privately owned international spirits company based in Glasgow, Scotland. It produces Single malt Scotch, single malts The Macallan, Highland Park Single Malt, Highland Park, The Glenrothes dist ...

Tomatin distillery Tomatin distillery is a single malt Scotch whisky distillery in the village of Tomatin. Its whisky is classified as being from the Highland region, as it is 25 minutes south of Inverness. It's owned by the Takara Shuzo company. Around eighty p ...

Whyte and Mackay Whyte & Mackay is a company producing alcoholic beverages based in Glasgow, Scotland. It is owned by Emperador Inc. (a subsidiary of the Alliance Global Group). History Charles Mackay (1850–1919) and James Whyte founded a company as whisky ...

William Grant & Sons William Grant & Sons Ltd is an independent, family-owned Scottish company that distills Scotch whisky and other selected categories of spirits. It was established in 1887 by William Grant, and is run by Grant's descendants as of 2018. It is the ...

* William Teacher & Sons Of these, Diageo and Chivas Brothers are the largest.

Purpose

The SWA's stated purpose is to promote, protect and represent the interests of the whisky industry in Scotland and around the world. Similar to the

Portman Group The Portman Group is a trade group composed of alcoholic beverage producers and brewers in the UK. History It was set up in 1989 as part of a campaign to raise awareness on alcohol-related issues, and its members account for the majority of a ...

, it also promotes responsible drinking, with campaigns to curb drinking to excess.

History

It was formed on 17 April 1942. It became a

limited company In a limited company, the liability of members or subscribers of the company is limited to what they have invested or guaranteed to the company. Limited companies may be limited by Share (finance), shares or by guarantee. In a company limited by ...

in 1960. The SWA's members represent over 95% of Scotch whisky production, which encompasses over 2,500 brands around the world. The SWA led an unsuccessful challenge to the Scottish government's minimum alcohol price policy, enshrined in the

Alcohol (Minimum Pricing) (Scotland) Act 2012 The Alcohol (Minimum Pricing) (Scotland) Act 2012 is an Act of the Scottish Parliament, which introduces a statutory minimum price for alcohol, initially 50p per unit, as an element in the programme to counter alcohol problems. The Act was passed ...

. The UK's

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

ruled on 15 November 2017 that the Act was not disproportionate to the stated policy aim of reducing

alcohol misuse Alcohol abuse encompasses a spectrum of unhealthy alcohol drinking behaviors, ranging from binge drinking to alcohol dependence, in extreme cases resulting in health problems for individuals and large scale social problems such as alcohol-r ...

and overconsumption, and therefore not contrary to

EU law European Union law is a system of rules operating within the member states of the European Union (EU). Since the founding of the European Coal and Steel Community following World War II, the EU has developed the aim to "promote peace, its val ...

. Karen Betts, the SWA chief executive, said the association "accept the Supreme Court's ruling".

Achievements

Scotch whisky has been a major industry for decades with exports totalling £4.7 billion in 2018, according to the Association. Whisky tourism is a side-benefit with distilleries being the third most visited attractions in Scotland, according to the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions. Some 2 million visits were recorded in 2018, a 6.1% increase over 2017 and a 56% increase compared to 2010. Some 68 distilleries operate visitor centres in Scotland and another eight accept visits by appointment. Hotels, restaurants and other facilities also benefit from the millions of pounds spent by tourists. The tourism has been a real plus to the economy, and of significant value especially in remote, rural areas, according to Fiona Hyslop MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism and External Affairs. "The Scottish Government is committed to working with partners like the Scotch Whisky Association to increase our tourism offer and encourage more people to visit our distilleries," the Secretary added.

References

External links

Video clips

A tough year in May 2009

Improving export business in September 2008

Interview with Gavin Hewitt

News items

981 million bottles exported in April 2004

Industry protection in November 2009

One billion bottles exported in April 2007

Protecting the integrity of the industry in December 2007

Safe drinking in November 2009
{{Authority control Organizations established in 1942 Scotch whisky Industry trade groups based in Scotland Organisations based in Edinburgh Distilleries in Scotland 1942 establishments in Scotland