Sazerac Co., the largest producer of distilled spirits in North America, said it is donating 14,800 N95 respirator masks to the healthcare industry in various markets across the country.
In addition to the donation of N95 masks, Sazerac is supplying all its team members with cloth face covers for personal protection. Team members working at all of Sazerac’s production facilities will receive face covers for each shift they work as the company produces hand sanitizer for some of the world’s largest organizations in healthcare, government, military, retail, distribution, airline, pharmacy, and banking industries.
“Unfortunately, N95 respirator masks remain scarce, so we are happy to be able to supply these to the healthcare industry in the fight against this pandemic,” said Matt Maimone, Sazerac’s chief operating officer.
Maimone adds, “We know the demand for hand sanitizer on an industrial scale is still great. To date, we’ve produced nearly 2,000,000 liters of hand sanitizer across our sites in North America and are continuing to source more ingredients to produce more every day. Our workforce has risen to the occasion to help meet this demand, and we appreciate their willingness to step up.”
The initial run of sanitizer started in Kentucky at its Buffalo Trace Distillery in Franklin County, and Sazerac continues to increase production at Glenmore Distillery in Owensboro and across its other locations.
In addition to providing face covers to team members, all Sazerac plants have taken additional steps to operate in a safe and responsible manner and are following all CDC guidelines including rigorous cleaning, observing six feet social distancing, mandating its team members to stay home if not feeling well, and implementing protective screens where appropriate.