Few things end the day better than a cold glass of
beer on the porch or in the pub, but the world’s favorite beverage has a massive
water footprint. On my
latest article on The Guardian Sustainable Business
Water Hub, I discuss various brewing companies’ water stewardship initiatives.
Water efficiency will be critical for companies in the coming decade as water becomes more expensive, scarce, and communities start to question whether the burden of having massive bottling plants in their communities are worth the environmental and social costs. Firms like Anheuser Busch-InBev and SABMiller are working with non-profits like
WWF to address the issue. Molson Coors, for example, slashed its
water consumption by 5 percent alone last year.
Whether the water to beer ratio is 30 or 180,
water scarcity will be a defining business challenge and
corporate social responsibility issue this decade. Firms like
Campbell Soup Company have realized that water efficiency projects offer a worthwhile return on investment (ROI), and beverage companies are wise to follow their lead.
The point is to not stop enjoying beer, as I surely did when I was in
The Netherlands last year (by the way, apple tart and beer at Winkel, an Amsterdam institution, is not to be missed), but to be aware of what goes into that glass of beer from farm to pub.
You can read the
full article here, and read additional excellent work on
Guardian Sustainable Business.
Pictured: apple tart and beer at Winkel, Amsterdam (click to expand).
