Ross & Squibb supports clean water project

NFL star Chris Long has teamed up with Ross & Squibb Distillery to bring clean, safe water to 1,600 people in southern Kenya.

Ross & Squibb is the oldest distillery in Indiana, US, and is located atop the Great Miami Buried Valley Aquifer, meaning it has benefitted from clean water from the aquifer since 1847.

Now, the distillery, whose brands include Remus Bourbon and Rossville Union Rye Whiskey, will work with the Chris Long Foundation on its Waterboys Initiative to bring long-lasting clean water supplies to Oloile in Kenya.

Shanae Randolph, marketing director brands for MGP’s Luxco branded spirits, said: “We’ve always been grateful for the clean water we have in Lawrenceburg, Indiana and this partnership helps us share that necessity for a far more important cause.”

The project features a deep borehole well, elevated water storage and a distribution system that will serve the residents of Oloile.

The Chris Long Foundation’s Kenya implementing partner is Well Aware, which will manage drilling and construction. The new water system is forecast to be operational by August this year.

Oloile receives fewer than 3.5 inches of rainfall annually, and recent droughts have lasted up to two years. As such, residents have been forced to drink contaminated water from seasonal rivers and untreated rainwater collected from rooves, or water sourced from hand-dug holes.

Long, a two-time Super Bowl champion and founder of the Waterboys Initiative, said about the partnership with Ross & Squibb: “Their funding and dedication to this cause helps us extend our impact, offering a lifeline to communities in dire need of clean water.”

MGP Ingredients completed its US$475 million acquisition of Luxco in April 2021.