MEXICO: Tequila Leaves Environmental
Hangover
By Emilio
Godoy*
MEXICO CITY (Tierramérica) - Tequila,
part of the national identity of Mexico, is
invariably present at family celebrations
and national holidays. But many are unaware
of the bitter taste the tequila industry
leaves in the water and soil.
About 38 percent alcohol (76 proof), tequila
is the product of the fermentation and
distillation of the blue agave (Agave
tequilana Weber), a plant native to Mexico
that has thick, spiky leaves that can grow
to over two metres in length.
Among the more than 200 agave varieties in
this country, blue agave is the best for
making tequila. Its Latin name refers to
German botanist Franz Weber, who classified
it in 1902.
The agave is grown in 180 municipalities in
the western states of Jalisco, Nayarit and
Michoacán, the central state of Guanajuato,
and Tamaulipas in the east. This is the
territory of the Tequila Denomination of
Origin, established by the government in
December 1974 to ensure the validity and
quality of the liquor.
Mexico has 118 tequila factories and 715
brands. In Jalisco alone, considered the
birthplace of tequila, the industry employs
38,000 people. From January to April, the
factories produced 48 million litres, with
about 40 million to be sold in Mexico and
the rest for export.
But Mexico's tequila tradition and the
tequila industry have environmental costs,
particularly for water and the soil.
One litre of tequila requires an input of at
least 10 litres of water. However, the
negative effect does not lie in the volume
of water, "but rather the fact that the
water is unlikely to be treated and will be
discharged as industrial waste, in the
ground and into streams and rivers. It is
polluted water that goes on to pollute more
water," José Hernández, a researcher with
the University of Guadalajara and member of
the Mexican Academy of Sciences, told
Tierramérica.
For every litre of tequila bottled, the
process generates five kilograms of agave
pulp and seven to 10 litres of distillation
waste, or "vinaza".
"The vinaza is acidic, it has an oil that
makes the soil impermeable, and is hot when
it is dumped. The acid is not recommended
for agriculture; it should be neutralised.
The oil makes the soil hard so it is useless
for farming. And where the ground cracks,
the vinaza filters into underground water
sources," explained Hernández.
The indigenous peoples who lived in the
region before the arrival of the Spanish
Conquistadors revered the agave for its many
benefits. The plant represented Mayahuel,
the Nahuatl goddess of fertility, whose 400
breasts were believed to feed an equal
number of children.
As a distilled beverage, tequila emerged in
the 16th century from the combination of the
native raw material and a fermentation
process introduced by the Spaniards.
Eight years after planting, the blue agave
is ready for harvest. Its leaves are removed
in order to extract the "piña", or heart of
the plant, from the ground.
The pineapple-shaped hearts are set to bake
50 to 72 hours in brick ovens or steel
tanks. The hearts soften and release the
sugars used for fermentation.
In the fermentation process, the sugars are
mixed with leavening, converting them into
alcohol. The liquid is distilled twice,
generally in stills made of copper or steel.
The result is tequila, which can then be
aged in oak barrels - "añejo" on the
bottle's label indicates it has been aged.
In 1996, the Secretariat (ministry) of
Environment and Natural Resources introduced
standards for the degree of toxicity
permitted in the waste and vinaza, which
were to be adopted by the tequila industry
in 2000. But none of the distilleries comply
with all of the rules.
According to the Jalisco State Environment
Secretariat, only one of the 67 tequila
factories there complies with the law on
discharge of waste into rivers and lakes.
In 2007, the authorities conducted 197
inspections, found irregularities at 51
distilleries, and shut down two of them.
Due to increased tequila consumption within
Mexico and abroad, the cultivation of blue
agave has expanded to other regions.
"They are growing in a protected forest,
invading several hectares, where they have
replaced the encino trees," said Adriana
Hernández, an activist with the
non-governmental Save the Forest Committee,
dedicated to protecting El Nixticuil forest.
El Nixticuil, declared a protected area in
December 2005, extends across 1,850 hectares
in the Jalisco municipality of Zapopán, 550
km from the Mexican capital.
The tequila industry has taken slow steps
towards recognising its responsibility for
the pollution. Some distilleries are
neutralising the acidity of the wastewater,
and cool down the vinaza before discharging
it, while producing compost from the agave
pulp.
Two vinaza treatment plants are slated to
begin operating in 2010.
In Hernández's opinion, there is no single
solution to the environment problem. "The
most common now is composting. In addition,
they are trying to remove the oil coming
from the cooked agave before distilling so
that the vinaza is more environmentally
friendly," said the researcher.
(*This story was originally published by
Latin American newspapers that are part of
the Tierramérica network. Tierramérica is a
specialised news service produced by IPS
with the backing of the United Nations
Development Programme, United Nations
Environment Programme and the World Bank.)
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