Johnnie Walker labeling under review following distillery closure

Published on Wednesday 1 July 2009 15:00

JOHNNIE Walker whisky bottle labels will need to be changed after parent company Diageo announced an overhaul that will see the closure of its last operation in the brand's home town of Kilmarnock.

The whisky is set to lose its 189-year association with Kilmarnock in Scotland under plans by Diageo to close its 700-strong packaging plant in the town.

Johnnie Walker was established in Kilmarnock in 1820 by founder John Walker and has maintained links with the town ever since – a fact stated on labelling.

But Diageo today admitted it would have to review the whisky's label ahead of the plant's closure in two years' time.

Today's announcement of a restructure of its Scottish operations will also mark the end of Diageo's historic distillery and cooperage casking site at Port Dundas with the loss of around 140 jobs.

Diageo's Port Dundas distillery – founded in 1810 – is based on a 21-acre site, which supplies grain spirit for Diageo's portfolio, providing around 39 million litres of alcohol each year.

Its neighbouring Dundashill Cooperage – which makes 85,000 hogshead casks each year – dates back even further, having been founded in 1770 by John Harvey, originally as a distillery.

The current Port Dundas distillery has been resurrected twice, having been rebuilt twice after fire damage in 1903 and 1913.

The site stopped production during the Second World War but restarted again in 1945 using only home-grown barley.

Diageo said no decisions have been taken on the future of the Port Dundas site, although it said "redevelopment must always be an option".

The distillery makes grain for a variety of Diageo's blended whisky brands, including Bell's and Johnnie Walker.

Johnnie Walker is one of Diageo's oldest whisky brands and claims to be the world's top selling Scotch whisky, with 16.3 million cases sold each year.

Mr Walker founded the whisky business when he launched a grocery store in Kilmarnock and began distilling whisky to sell in the shop.

While it was established in the town, it has since been created and bottled in various sites across Scotland.

Around 80% of the brand's volume is bottled at Diageo's Shieldhall packaging plant in Glasgow.

It is now sold in more than 180 countries worldwide.