Eco-friendly Alchohol

December 31st, 2009 BY dalgal | No Comments

New Year celebrations aside, most adults enjoy an alcohol beverage (or two). Now even the most environmentally conscious consumer can enjoy a beer without fear of compromising their environmentally friendly lifestyle with the introduction of eco-friendly alcohol! Many wineries and brewing companies are getting on the environmental bandwagon and reducing their global footprint with sustainability steps. Some naturally are more advanced than others and one of those companies is the New Belgium Brewing Company.

New Belgium Brewing is one of our households favorite breweries, their Fat Tire Amber Ale is a particular favorite and we can drink rest assured that the brewery is making headway in sustainability and is continuing on it’s path to reduce it’s global footprint. We first became aware of New Belgium Brewing after seeing their brewery in a television program and were amazed at the steps they’d taken to become more sustainable, these guys aren’t just talking the talk, they are walking the walk. Changes have included:

Becoming the first wind powered brewery in the United States!
Free bicycles for employees after 1 year of employment!
Increasing efficiencies in the brewing process
Utilizing green design throughout their buildings, through using natural lighting, HVAC and recycled materials
Implementing a process for treating their waste water
On-site energy production via brewing by products, which can provide 15% of their energy needs
Constant benchmarking, including the PDF report on Fat Tires carbon footprint!
Sustainable Eventing, their bike festival, Tour de Fat, celebrates bicycling as a viable form of alternative transport. A solar-powered stage provides sound for the day, beer is served in compostable cups.
Partnering to support innovative technology
Members of 1% For the Planet, which means that, through donations and fund-raisers, 1% of New Belgium Brewing revenue goes to environmental non-profits.

But they aren’t stopping there, for the future they plan for the following:

To reduce their carbon footprint by 25%
To reduce their water usage by 10%
To
increase their landfill diversion rate from 89.5% to 95%.

These are some lofty goals but they seem 100% dedicated to a more sustainable brewery and you can find out more about their sustainability plan on their website.