Brown-Forman to invest US$45m for cooperage refurb
Brown-Forman is to invest US$45 million in modernising its cooperage, resulting in the loss of 70 jobs at its Louisville, Kentucky-based site.
New equipment will be installed in the ‘heading’ and ‘staving’ departments of the cooperage, which produces more than 2,500 barrels per day for whisk(e)y brands Jack Daniel’s, Woodford Reserve, Old Forester, Early Times, and Canadian Mist, as well as el Jimador and Herradura Tequilas.
Brown-Forman will offer “transitional assistance” to impacted employees, and will continue to employ approximately 205 individuals at the site.
The cooperage will remain open during the construction phase, and the project is expected to be completed by early 2019.
Brown-Forman also has a cooperage in Decatur, Alabama, where it crafts Jack Daniel’s barrels.
