Environmental protection has become more prominent in the brewing community and trying to solve the carbon footprint and Co2 emissions problem has been on the forefront.

To make one barrel of beer, up to seven barrels of water are used. Beer also requires a lot of heat during the brewing process and refrigeration immediately following which contributing to energy waste.

Over the last six years, the Brewers Association has created sustainability tools for brewers which, over the span of four or five years, can consistently reduce their carbon emissions and water consumption, helping both the environment and brewers lower their costs. Breweries that submitted five years of consecutive data showed a steady natural-resource efficiency improvement of 1 to 2 percent per year.

Horse & Dragon Brewing Company in Fort Collins, Colorado, is one of the breweries working with the BA to become more sustainable by using a benchmarking tool the BA developed to help breweries measure their energy and water use, carbon emissions, and costs for disposing of wastewater and used grains.

“We’re trying to chip away at this in small ways,” said Carol Cochran, co-owner of Horse & Dragon and a member of the BA Sustainability Subcommittee. Just the mere act of measuring usage is helping breweries to use less energy and resources, she said.

Knowing your water usage per barrel of beer compared to a similarly sized brewery gives owners a starting point for change. “If you’re way above, you can dig in and find out why or consult with other breweries in your size and area,” she said.

Photo courtesy of Brewers Association