It would have only been a matter of time before our and Bruce Jack’s paths crossed. Bruce was born in Muizenberg and spent time at Surfers Corner in his youth. He also admits to a resonance with the humble beginnings of The Beach Co-op in his own rise to success. We asked Bruce to share some of his passion and sense of connection to the ocean with us and how this has influenced the principles with which he runs his business – Bruce Jack Wines.

I grew up on Surfers Corner in Muizenberg. We lived in the old Sandown-on-Sea Hotel right on the beach, so I’ve had an affinity for the sea all my life. The oceans are the last buffer between humanity’s survival and those few greedy ones among us blindly attempting to destroy what gives us life. We must do everything we can to keep our oceans healthy.

My father, David Jack, is an obsessive collector of litter. As CEO of the V&A Waterfront he was much loved by all his staff and hugely respected for always being the first one to pick up a piece of litter. One of the reasons the V&A Waterfront is the most successful waterfront venues in the world today is due to this legacy of his. He instilled these values in me from an early age. I have been known to stop motor vehicles when their drivers or passengers have thrown litter out the window and give them an impassioned (sometimes slightly threatening) lecture on littering. Combine this occupational hazard with my love of the sea and I think I have been picking litter off beaches since I was four.

We have gone about controlling what we can in terms of single-use plastic utilisation. Not only have we eliminated single-use plastic from our production process, but we have eliminated plastic handles from our Bag-in-Box (BiB) production and have changed the colour of the BiB tap from black to white so that it can be picked up in recycling depots. We also pioneered the first South African BiB made with a 100% recyclable bag. One of the biggest uses of plastic in the wine industry is the shrink wrap used to secure boxes on pallets for overseas shipping and we have developed protocols that reduce the amount of clingfilm used to wrap these pallets and indicate on the pallet wrap that the plastic is recyclable. If our suppliers cannot demonstrate that they have recycled the pallet wrap they lose their contract with us.

At Bruce Jack Wines we stand for something. We believe all companies should. We believe consumers must demand to know what companies stand for. We believe that consumers have the power to change the behaviour of companies by only supporting those that stand for good. At Bruce Jack Wines we believe in ocean revitalisation, environmental rejuvenation and social upliftment through education. We are involved in supporting all of these principles on a global scale with many different partners. We are extremely proud to now be a key partner of The Beach Co-op.