According to Climate Central “each of the ingredients in beer is facing different risks due to climate change.”

Water makes up 90%-95% of every bottle, can, or keg – and brewing requires five to six times more water than what ends up in each glass.  Beer’s total water footprint extends well beyond the brewery and into the fields where barley and hops are grown.

Unfortunately climate change is contributing to nationwide changes in the quality and quantity of freshwater. Reduced snowpack and groundwater depletion further limit water supplies available for irrigation and brewing.

Barley is also a brewing essential part of the brewing process adding color, flavor and froth, as well being key to a beer’s fermentation. But barley is also highly sensitive to extreme heat and drought, putting it at risk in a warming climate 

Global warming could raise atmospheric temperatures over land over 9 degrees Fahrenheit according to a study published in Nature Plants. And if that happens the world’s barley supply could potentially drop as much as 15% by the end of the century.

The good news is that increasingly big brewers like Anheuser-Busch and craft beer companies like BrewDog and New Belgium Brewing are taking the impact of climate change on the brewing industry seriously, and taking steps to stem the tide.

Anheuser-Busch has invested $100 million in EverGrain, a sustainable ingredient company created to unlock every grain of potential in barley and make a positive impact on people and the planet. And New Belgium has taken outstanding steps to champion renewable brewing.

SOURCE: AMERICANCRAFTBEER.COM