Kichesippi goes green

Ottawa brewery takes environmental footprint seriously

As brewers everywhere work to build better ties with their local communities, many are creating environmental responsibility programs to lower their environmental footprints.

One local example is Kichesippi Beer Co., which has hired a fulltime “sustainability officer” to take a fine comb through its day-to-day operations and try to figure out how and where the brewery can do things better.

Chris Boerger, 27, came to the position in September with a wealth of knowledge in the area, having previously worked in similar roles with PE International, World University Service of Canada and Ecology Ottawa.

Boerger, a beer lover, is a real nerd when it comes to finding environmental efficiencies. While he has already started looking at the brewery’s water and energy use as well as solid and liquid waste output, he is also taking a much larger look at the brewery’s environmental footprint.

He is meeting with farmers who supply Kichesippi’s grain, used to make its numerous beers, and plans to meet with all suppliers that the brewery deals with to ensure environmental sustainability in everything from farming to the disposal of Kichesippi beer bottles.

“What I’m starting to do is start to focus my attention to the product level,” said Boerger. “So, rather than only looking at the environmental outputs of our operations at the brewery, I’ll be looking at the entire life cycle of our products.”

Breweries have long-standing traditions of partnering with other local businesses, such as farms, to dispose of their waste.

When making a commercialsized batch of beer, brewers use well in excess of 150 pounds of malted grain, which is steeped in water to extract the sugars that later become alcohol. When the sugar has been extracted, the remaining “spent grain” is coveted by area farmers who mix it with livestock feed and give it to their animals. Some breweries use their waste water to water lawns.

From an environmental standpoint, chemicals used to sanitize equipment are usually among the hardest components to solve.

But Boerger’s aiming higher. On top of the brewery’s desire to deal with the environmental waste created by its day-to-day operations, Boerger is tackling the task of cutting Kichesippi’s emissions. While he couldn’t speak about the project specifically just yet, he promised more details in January.

Kichesippi, he said, is looking at ways to reduce or offset its greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 100 per cent in the coming years.

In 2010, Kichesippi sold 30,000 litres of beer; in 2012, it sold 290,000 litres. The brewery opened in April 2010 and focused on its Natural Blonde brand. Today, Kichesippi has five regular beers in its rotation, including two reviewed this week, plus seasonal offerings such as Wuchak Black, the third reviewed brew.