This script is from the second season of Beer Notes, which you can listen to at beernotes.org.
Environmentally-friendly craft breweries are changing the landscape of beer, from the ingredients to the packaging to the brewing process itself. One brewery is even using rejected Kellogg’s cornflakes in its mash. This week on Beer Notes, we’re discussing sustainable brewing.
Seven Bro7hers Brewery in the United Kingdom made headlines recently when they teamed up with Kellogg’s to make their “Throw Away IPA” — brewed with cornflakes that don’t meet quality control standards. 70% of the IPA’s grain is wheat, while 30% of it is made with cornflakes that are deemed too big, too small or too overcooked for Kellogg’s to package with their cereal.
Seven Bro7hers’ isn’t the only brewery using their beer to fight food waste; Toast Ale, another business in the U.K., brews all of their beer with surplus fresh bread that would otherwise end up in a landfill.
Independent breweries are confronting more sustainability issues than just food waste. Brooklyn Brewery uses a totally wind-powered production system and Alaskan Brewing Company’s “Beer Powered Beer” initiative fuels their steam boiler with the brewery’s own spent grains.
Saltwater Brewery in Florida was the first craft brewery to use biodegradable, plastic-free six pack rings, and now Corona is the first global beer brand to roll out a trial of this plastic-free product.
The Brewers Association has Sustainability Manuals for brewers because it believes that conscientious brewing practices will ensure the long-term success of the craft beer industry. Craft breweries are at the forefront of sustainability, and cornflake-flavored beer is only the beginning. For Beer Notes, this is Ann McGinnis Hillyer.
