- Built to enable reconnection with friends in nature – then reclaimed, ensuring no impact on nature
- Constructed from 100% natural materials by Corona, the beer made from 100% natural ingredients*
- Research reveals Britons are looking to socialise outdoors more this year – but want the natural world to be protected from litter
St Ives, Cornwall, 03 June 2021: A unique bar crafted without any man-made materials is set to open on the Cornish coast this weekend, as new research reveals that the country’s passion for outdoor celebrations this summer is tempered by concerns about the toll these gatherings take on the natural world.
Commissioned by Corona, the beer made from 100% natural ingredients*, The 100% Natural Bar has been designed to provide a haven for people to disconnect from busy lives and reconnect with friends in nature – without leaving behind any trace on nature itself.
Created by eco-building expert Molly Windels-Lyte and the team at In-Build, the bar has been constructed on the pristine white Porthminster beach in St Ives, using sand, clay, wood and bamboo. When taken down it will leave no trace in the natural world – just as Corona is urging people to do when meeting up with friends again this summer.
Entirely hand-made and filled with carefully-crafted details, the bar contains no metal, plastic or concrete at all. Instead, a frame of sustainable ply, held together with wooden nails, underpins walls made entirely of sand and clay. Even the hand sanitiser is all-natural, dispensed from a sandstone pump.
At the end of its residency, every one of the bar’s elements will be taken away and returned to nature, reused or recycled.
As a fully functioning bar, it has a ready supply of cold beers, socially distanced seating and attentive staff, and avoids the risk, litter or disruption often associated with outdoor gatherings.
Yet its location and open, elegant design, filled with curves and clean lines that imitate those in the natural world, means guests can enjoy incredible sea views over a cold beer. Sunken seating pods, partially excavated from the beach itself, keep guests socially distanced – and encourage them to kick off their shoes and feel the sand between their toes.
The 100% Natural Bar opens as research reveals two thirds (63%) of under-35s are looking forward to socialising outdoors more this summer, with the beach the most longed-for location (52%). The biggest motivation for outdoor socialising is being able to get back out into the natural world after so long indoors (61%).
But younger Britons are also mindful of the impact this might have on nature, with nine in 10 (91%) believing it important to protect the natural world from the impact of litter created by people gathering there.
Eight in 10 (79%) have seen people leave rubbish in public spaces, with 50% admitting they’ve done it themselves.
Hearteningly, 78% of people say they would clean up after someone else, with nine in 10 (89%) believing it important to leave no trace behind them when they leave.
Eco-builder Molly Windels-Lyte said: “We know people will be heading to the beach this summer to reunite with friends over a beer. But beaches often don’t have the infrastructure for groups of people, illustrated by some of the scenes we’ve seen lately of rubbish taking over these places of natural beauty. So the challenge with building The 100% Natural Bar was to create somewhere better-suited for socialising that kept that connection with nature.
“By limiting ourselves to natural materials, many of which are already recycled or reclaimed, we’re hoping to show that we can build by working with nature, not against it. And if we can create an entire bar that leaves no trace in the natural world, people can do likewise when they meet up with their friends.”
Jessica McGeorge, Corona Marketing Director, Europe Zone, said: “The best place to enjoy a beer made from 100% natural ingredients* is outdoors, in nature, with friends. But we need to be careful that we protect what makes the natural world such a powerful place to disconnect – the sense of peace, space and beauty.
“We want to demonstrate a way to get back in touch with both friends and the outdoors that doesn’t compromise either – by working with our surroundings and not against them. The natural world is the source of everything that goes into Corona, so we want to make sure we enjoy it without leaving a trace.”
The 100% Natural Bar is open to visitors now until 7th June, from 1pm to 9pm each day on the scenic Porthminster beach in St Ives, Cornwall.
Corona has a long history of helping to protect paradise, having worked with over 68,000 volunteers to complete over 1,400 clean-ups, cleaning over 44 million square metres of beach in the process.
*Corona is made from 100% natural ingredients – water, barley, maize and hops, with the water carbonated prior to bottling.