Komos builds school in Mexico with Tequila byproducts

Ultra-premium Tequila brand Komos has opened a classroom in Amatitán, Mexico, built with materials repurposed from agave waste.

Komos aims to achieve zero waste through its Komos Foundation, which was created as part of the brand’s launch in 2018. It claims its construction projects with Tequila by-products, such as the classroom, are the largest sustainability initiatives in the town of Tequila, Mexico.

Co-founder of the Casa Komos Brands Group (CKBG) Richard Betts was inspired by an Arizona schoolhouse he attended as a child, which was made from adobe bricks.

In Mexico, he and the team have upcycled bagazo (cooked and pulped agave fibres) and vinaza (liquid waste by-product) into ‘sturdy’ adobe bricks to build the schoolhouse, using an age-old building technique. They worked closely with government regulators, who, due to the ‘unprecedented nature of the project’, needed to review plans and approve the brick to ensure the building could withstand the test of time.

After choosing the best methods to transform by-product waste into sustainable building materials, the team also convinced other agave distillers (as well as architecture students at Iteso University and architect Ernesto Rizo) to join their efforts – with the aim to use the bricks to build (and rebuild) housing, schools, hospitals and other local infrastructure projects in the region.

The classroom was developed with 42,500kg of bagazo and 16,000 litres of vinaza, creating 2,500 adobe bricks. The Komos Foundation said it was made using 98% bioconstruction materials, without any metal or cement, except for the steel beams used to support the roof.

Named Escuela Gabriela Mistral, the multi-purpose classroom will allow 39 new primary students to attend school. In addition to school lessons, the classroom will host community events, including ongoing curriculum programmes for adults focusing on topics from accounting to water management, family communication and more.

Betts said: “The heart of this endeavour is to leverage sustainable solutions to have a truly significant impact on the wellbeing of the local community in Tequila, Mexico, and beyond.

“The new Amatitán classroom is truly just the beginning for us – we’re developing additional projects that aim to help address social and economic inequality, meaningfully transforming communities in the state of Jalisco.”

Elias Campollo, who serves as Komos Foundation’s director of operations, assisted on the project. The pair will look to scale their efforts and oversee new projects supporting Jalisco, leaving a lasting and positive impact on the region’s communities. Several more classrooms are planned for 2025.

Campollo added: “With determination, Tequila by-products, and a commitment to education, we have crafted a space where learning can take root, dreams can flourish, and futures are forever changed.

“By being at the forefront of these transformative efforts, we hope to inspire the rest of the industry to join in and ensure we all give back to the land and people who make it possible to drink Tequila.”

Last year, Komos partnered with Green Loop to adopt a sustainable solution to its packaging. All the brand’s bottles are designed to be continually reused and recycled.

In October, following ‘sustained international demand’ for premium agave spirits, the brand debuted in Dubai Duty Free, expanding its presence in global travel retail.

Prior to that, it launched a Reposado Cristalino expression exclusively for the travel space.