Peat Bogs and the Environmental Debate

A 30 cm block of peat can take about 300 years to replace. Lydia Cole of the University of St Andrews illustrates the timescale with an accumulation rate of about 1 mm a year.[11] That slow growth sits at the heart of whisky's peat debate: a material used to make smoke holds carbon accumulated over centuries.

The question is not simply how much peat Scotch uses. It is what extraction leaves behind, how quickly peat can recover and whether restoration commitments deliver measurable results.[1][8][11]

How much peat does Scotch whisky use?

Scotch whisky production used an estimated 8,000 tonnes of peat in 2023 to make 64,000 tonnes of peated malt, according to the Maltsters' Association of Great Britain. Nine facilities make peated malt for the industry, each drawing on a small number of peat sources.[1] Guidance from Scotland's Rural College, published with the Scotch Whisky Association and SEFARI Gateway, puts the supplying area at roughly 300 hectares.[4]

These figures measure material used in a particular year. They do not establish annual greenhouse gas emissions from burning peat in maltings or whisky's percentage of all Scottish peat extraction.

The share of Scotch made using peat is disputed. The Conversation says about 80% is made using peat; the Scotch Whisky Association gives no share, saying many blends include a peated influence.[1][10] A reliable percentage is not established.

The Scotch Whisky Association, the industry's representative body, calls its annual peat requirement “very small” compared with horticulture and other peat-dependent industries. It also makes a clear acknowledgement: “No peat use is negligible in terms of impact on the environment”.[1]

Small demand does not mean small consequences in every respect. A limited extraction area still raises questions about damaged ground and carbon released through burning. The wider guide to whisky sustainability explores the surrounding questions about production and resources.

Why peat bogs matter beyond whisky

Peatlands hold an extraordinary share of the world's soil carbon. According to the IUCN UK Peatland Programme, they cover about 3 to 4% of the globe but hold one third of its soil carbon.[9] What begins as a discussion about malt production quickly becomes a question of land stewardship.

NatureScot puts Scotland's peatland area at around 2 million hectares; SRUC gives about 1.8 million hectares.[4][5] That difference needs resolving before either figure can serve as a precise denominator for whisky's share.

The Scottish Government's spring 2026 statistics put Scotland's peat carbon stock at roughly two billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, the measure used to express greenhouse gases on a common basis. They also report that peat soils released around 6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2023, representing 15% of Scotland's net emissions.[8] These are Scotland-wide figures, not emissions attributed to whisky.

Estimates of peatland condition also differ. The Scottish Government describes roughly three quarters of Scotland's peatlands as being in poor condition. The Scotch Whisky Association says roughly 80%, while The Conversation says more than 80%.[1][8][10] Across the UK, the IUCN UK Peatland Programme estimates that 80% of peatlands are degraded, emitting 29.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent annually.[9]

Together, those figures establish the scale of the wider problem. They do not assign that national burden to one industry.

The slow replacement problem

Calling peat something that simply grows back leaves out the most important part: the wait. Cole's illustration shows why replacement must be considered over centuries, rather than treated as an immediate answer to extraction.[11]

University of Bristol authors writing in The Conversation describe burning peat for whisky as releasing “ancient carbon”.[10] The carbon released when peat burns and the long period needed to replace what has been removed are both central to the debate.

Restoration is not the same as replenishment. Restoring a hectare does not mean that a particular quantity of extracted peat has regrown. An area-based pledge alone cannot demonstrate that emissions from peat use have been balanced.

Restoration remains important. To judge its progress, reporting needs to show what work took place and how the peatland recovered, without treating either as a substitute for measuring extraction and emissions.

What Scotland's planning policy allows

New commercial peat extraction is still possible in Scotland, but the whisky exception is tightly conditional. National Planning Framework 4, published on 13 February 2023, supports it only for the Scottish whisky industry and only where all five conditions in Policy 5(e) are met.[3] That support is not a general permission to extract.

The table summarises those conditions as recorded in the November 2026 evidence.[3]

SRUC's May 2026 guidance also describes the need to demonstrate an “overriding need” and provide a fully funded restoration plan.[4] Those are the guidance's terms, distinct from the wording of the planning policy itself.

What the whisky industry has committed to

The SWA introduced its Commitment to Responsible Peat Use in 2023. Its Peat Supply Chain Working Group refreshed the commitment in 2025 with the Scotch Whisky Research Institute and the Maltsters' Association of Great Britain.[1]

It covers responsible extraction, optimisation and efficiency, and peatland restoration and stewardship. Five extraction principles give it structure: Select, Minimise, Restore, Develop and Collaborate.[1] This industry commitment sits alongside, rather than replaces, Scotland's planning requirements.

One practical approach is to get more smoke from less peat. Angela Gallego-Sala of the University of Exeter describes grinding peat to produce more smoke and using smoke recycling systems as methods distillers employ to reduce peat use.[11] These are efficiency measures, rather than an end to peat use.

Restoration is another strand. The SWA's 2021 sustainability strategy committed the industry to an active role in peatland restoration by 2035. The association subsequently funded the Peatland Restoration Foundation, aimed mainly at small and medium firms, and supports its aim “to restore more peat than it uses”.[1][2]

The ambition is clear. Delivery needs equally clear reporting: what was restored, when, over what area and with what outcome.

Restoration targets and results are different

The Peatland ACTION Partnership put 15,448 hectares on the road to recovery in 2025/26, a record annual result, NatureScot reports. NatureScot's grant programme contributed 10,352 hectares through 67 projects.[5] These are national programme figures, not a measure of restoration funded by whisky producers.

The annual review records an aim of at least 12,000 hectares for 2025/26 and an expectation of around 10,000 hectares for 2026/27. It also sets out the Climate Change Plan 2026 to 2040 ambition: increase restoration by 10% annually to 2030, reaching more than 400,000 hectares by 2040.[6]

Cumulative figures require attention to both dates and definitions. NatureScot's total of over 65,000 hectares put on the road to recovery since 2012 runs to the end of March 2025. Its later statement that over 105,000 hectares have “benefited directly from restoration activities” uses a different description.[5][7] These are not interchangeable totals.

Case study: Restoration at Ardmore and Airds Moss

Beam Suntory says its Peatland Water Sanctuary began in 2021, aiming to restore 1,300 hectares by 2030.[12] https://www.suntory.com/sustainability/highlight/202211_237.html

The producer reported work beginning near Ardmore in November 2021 and a second phase at Airds Moss with RSPB Scotland.[12] https://www.suntory.com/sustainability/highlight/202211_237.html

Its November 2022 account reported approximately 13 hectares restored near Ardmore. That was a reported result; the larger figure remained a target.[12] https://www.suntory.com/sustainability/highlight/202211_237.html

Verdict: Documented

Claim supported: Producer-reported restoration near Ardmore and a further phase with RSPB Scotland at Airds Moss.[12] https://www.suntory.com/sustainability/highlight/202211_237.html

Evidence and limits: Beam Suntory's account supports the reported work, but is not a current independent assessment of the programme.[12] https://www.suntory.com/sustainability/highlight/202211_237.html

Source mapping: That account supports the initiative, dates, target, reported restoration and partnership above.[12] https://www.suntory.com/sustainability/highlight/202211_237.html

Earliest known source: Not reliably established. Last checked: November 2026; the exact day is not documented.

How to read a peat sustainability claim

Start with what has actually been measured. Tonnes extracted describe material use; hectares supplying peat describe land area. Hectares receiving restoration work record activity, while carbon outcomes concern its environmental effect. Placing those numbers together does not show that one balances another.

Then look for a reporting year and a named source. Distinguish an industry estimate from a government statistic, a producer's reported result from a future target, and extraction efficiency from restoration activity. The evidence above supports those distinctions, but does not provide a single balance sheet for whisky's peat use.

Two shortcuts are particularly misleading. SRUC describes the land supplying whisky as a very small fraction of Scotland's peatlands, so national degradation cannot simply be assigned to whisky.[4] Equally, Cole's accumulation calculation shows why limited demand does not make extracted peat quickly replaceable.[11]

The closing test is simple: does the claim show what happened, when, and with what measured outcome? Tradition, small scale and a restoration pledge cannot supply the missing answer.

Where to go next

• Energy in Whisky Production: Fuels, Heat and Renewables: examine the wider question of production heat.
• Water Use in Distilling: explore another resource question in whisky production.
• Lightweight Glass, Packaging and Greenwashing: assess environmental claims elsewhere in the supply chain.

Sources

1. Scotch Whisky Association. Commitment to Responsible Peat Use. Current page, including the 2025 refresh. https://www.scotch-whisky.org.uk/industry-insights/sustainability/commitment-to-responsible-peat-use/

2. Scotch Whisky Association. Scotch Whisky Commits to Reach Net-Zero by 2040 with Launch of New Sustainability Strategy. 2021. https://www.scotch-whisky.org.uk/newsroom/scotch-whisky-commits-to-reach-net-zero-by-2040-with-launch-of-new-sustainability-strategy/

3. Scottish Government. National Planning Framework 4. 13 February 2023, Policy 5(e). https://www.gov.scot/publications/national-planning-framework-4/pages/3/

4. Scotland's Rural College, with the Scotch Whisky Association and SEFARI Gateway. Principles of Responsible Peat Extraction for the Scotch Whisky Industry. May 2026. https://sefari.scot/sites/www.sefari.scot/files/2026-05/Principles%20of%20Responsible%20Peat%20Extraction%20for%20the%20Scotch%20Whisky%20Industry%20May%202026_0.pdf

5. NatureScot. World Peatlands Day celebrated with record restoration figures in Scotland. 2026. https://www.nature.scot/world-peatlands-day-celebrated-record-restoration-figures-scotland

6. NatureScot, Peatland ACTION. Peatland Action Annual Review 25/26. 2026. https://www.nature.scot/sites/default/files/2026-06/peatland-action-annual-review-for-2025-26-scottish-government-edition-accessible.pdf

7. NatureScot. Peatland ACTION: What we have achieved. Reporting to the end of March 2025. https://www.nature.scot/climate-change/nature-based-solutions/nature-based-solutions-practice/peatland-action/peatland-action-what-we-have-achieved

8. Scottish Government. Developing Official Statistics on Scotland's Peatlands. March 2026. https://www.gov.scot/binaries/content/documents/govscot/publications/statistics/2026/03/developing-official-statistics-on-scotlands-peatlands/documents/developing-official-statistics-on-scotlands-peatlands---pdf/developing-official-statistics-on-scotlands-peatlands---pdf/govscot:document/Developing+Official+Statistics+on+Scotland%2527s+Peatlands.pdf

9. IUCN UK Peatland Programme. Climate regulation. Undated page, supplied record checked November 2026. https://www.iucn-uk-peatlandprogramme.org/peatland-benefits/climate-regulation

10. Halamka TA and Vreeken M, University of Bristol, The Conversation. Why peat is a key ingredient in whisky and the climate crisis. 24 January 2025. https://theconversation.com/why-peat-is-a-key-ingredient-in-whisky-and-the-climate-crisis-245497

11. Discover Magazine. The Peatlands Behind Scotch Are Now Part of Global Climate Talks. Undated in the supplied record. https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-peatlands-behind-scotch-are-now-part-of-global-climate-talks-43395

12. Suntory. Beam Suntory Partners with RSPB Scotland to Launch Phase II of Peatland Water Sanctuary Initiative. November 2022, producer's account; title shortened to omit a financial figure. https://www.suntory.com/sustainability/highlight/202211_237.html

This desk-researched article uses the supplied verified fact sheet, separating official statistics and planning policy from industry estimates, expert commentary and producer reporting.

Last checked: November 2026