NHS workers are to be given free bottles of hand sanitiser from a Cornish gin company that has branched out during the current Covid1-9 crisis.

In response to concerns about the availability of hand sanitiser, Tarquin’s Gin based near Padstow has switched production from spirits to the sanitising gel.

Made to an approved World Health Organisation recipe and infused with Tarquin’s signature gin botanical essences – juniper and orange - it is designed to lift the spirits of those most in need.

Tarquin Leadbetter, founder and master distiller said: “We’re all in this together and if we can help our local community in this struggle, then that’s absolutely fantastic. My older brother is an NHS doctor and I’m so proud to be able to support the incredible job they are doing, in our own small way."

Falmouth Packet:

Tarquin’s is supplying the first batch of hand sanitiser – more than 100 litres of it – to the Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation, which will then be distributed to community hospitals across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

It will also be going to food banks in Cornwall and to Devon and Cornwall Police, with Tarquin pleased to share samples with Chief Inspector Ian Thompson, former inspector for Falmouth and Helston and now PPE lead in Cornwall, last Friday.

Like their gin, Tarquin’s sanitiser is created in small hand-crafted batches – but the distillery team are working around the clock to increase supply to local NHS community hospitals, working with their procurement team.

For other individuals working on the frontline Tarquin’s is hoping to create small personal bottles of sanitiser – using repurposed gin bottles – that will be available in early April via the online shop, operating with an honesty policy.