Torres Brandy has announced the fourth edition of the Torres Brandy Zero Challenge, with submissions open from today until 31st December 2025. This internationally acclaimed sustainable hospitality competition aims to showcase the most innovative, eco-conscious projects from around the world, celebrating creativity, responsibility, and forward-thinking solutions in the industry.
The competition is open to hotels, restaurants, bars, and cocktail bars, inviting professionals from across the hospitality sector to participate.
The challenge begins now with the submission of projects, which will be evaluated in local finals held in participating countries throughout January and February 2026. The winners of each national final will then advance to the Global Final, which will take place in Barcelona in April 2026 during the Barcelona Cocktail Fest.
The challenge will bring together the local finalists in Barcelona, with Torres Brandy set to champion the winner and their innovative project by awarding €30,000 to bring their vision to life. The Global Final will unfold over two days, during which the finalists will present their projects to the judges, who will evaluate each proposal to select the winner of the Torres Brandy Zero Challenge 2026.
This year’s judging panel, who will evaluate the projects at the Global Final in Barcelona, features renowned figures from the hospitality industry, including drinks author and The World’s 50 Best Bars Academy Chair for Spain and Portugal, François Monti; Managing Director of the Sustainable Restaurant Association, Juliane Caillouette-Noble; and award-winning New York-based drinks journalist and spirits expert, Mandy Naglich.
Each project must address a concrete socio-environmental challenge and deliver measurable impact, from reducing CO₂ emissions or waste to repurposing materials or tackling other key sustainability goals. Participating countries currently span three continents and include the United States, Canada, Mexico, Spain, Italy, Finland, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Chile, with additional Asian countries to be confirmed soon.
Last year, the third edition of the challenge crowned Daniel Pappa, bartender at Svanen in Oslo (No. 32 in The World’s 50 Best Bars 2025), as the global winner for his project ‘D.G.Æ (The Ugly Duckling)’, which combats waste by repurposing surplus and damaged farm products. The second edition recognised Mexican bartender Alberto del Toro for his project ‘Taller Zero, giving a second chance’, which transforms discarded glass bottles into ashtrays, cups, and lamps while creating employment opportunities for older people at risk of labour exclusion. The inaugural edition awarded renowned bartender Giacomo Giannotti, owner of Paradiso in Barcelona (No. 4 in The World’s 50 Best Bars 2025), for his innovative ‘Zero Waste Lab’ project.
For further information and registration see Torres Brandy Zero Challenge.
