F&B Communications LLC Event news (blog)

St. Louis workshop registration underway - see what Goose Island has accomplished via the Green Line!

Fri, 11 Mar 2011 10:56:53 GMT

Early registration for the St. Louis workshop is underway. We organize these all-volunteer workshops to help breweries save water and save money. Now, you can see what Goose Island has accomplished with their Green Line initiative.

Chicago Beer Society member Ethan Sellers recently produced a short (4:30 minute) video about how Goose Island Beer Company's Green Line has reduced its water use in the brewing process by millions of gallons, through some relatively inexpensive but smart process decisions.

The results are at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_HVUQW20Vs&feature=player_embedded

Goose Island's Tom Korder has attended 3 of the 4 workshops and conferences organized by conserve-greatlakes.com - and it's fantastic to see the brewery's accomplishments in water savings!

Thanks to Goose Island for their vision, cheers, Lucy

Madison is a craft brew destination....

Thu, 07 Oct 2010 15:01:09 GMT

Our media partner, Great Lakes Brewing News, shares a PDF of Madison's craft beer bar destinations

And Jeffrey Glazer, editor of Madison Beer Review, has more suggestions for more beer-centric destinations on his blog

Robin Shepard writes about beer for the Isthmus, and here's a link to recent columns ;
he was also a speaker at the first GL water conservation conference in Milwaukee!

cheers, and see you in Madison!

Meet us in Madison - Great Lakes Water Conservation Conference

Thu, 07 Oct 2010 14:54:19 GMT

SPEAKERS ANNOUNCED FOR THE GREAT LAKES WATER CONSERVATION CONFERENCE, MADISON, WI - OCTOBER 18-19, 2010

IMMEDIATE RELEASE - The Great Lakes Water Conservation Conference brings together craft brewers, cheese makers, and policy makers in water conservation, to discuss best practices for water savings in Madison, WI, October 18-19, 2010.

Impending regulations from the Great Lakes Compact will affect all water-intensive industries, and will be discussed by leaders in water policy. Jim Nicholas, Director of the U.S. Geological Survey’s Michigan Water Science Center, will discuss water availability in the Great Lakes, link water availability to usage, and provide an example of Compact implementation in Michigan. Rich Bowman, Director of Government Relations for Michigan chapter of The Nature Conservancy, will talk about the current state of water certification, and demonstrate a new groundwater recharge calculator developed by The Nature Conservancy, The Institute for Water Research and Coca Cola North America.

The keynote speaker, Todd Ambs, is the River Network's fifth President and has worked in the environmental policy field for more than 30 years. His experience includes serving as Executive Director of two statewide river organizations, Policy Director for the Ohio Attorney General and Senior Policy Analyst for the Wisconsin Department of Justice. From 2003 until becoming President of River Network in May 2010, Ambs ran the Water Division for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Todd has served on a number of water-related boards and commissions and was the lead negotiator for the State of Wisconsin during the development of the Great Lakes Compact. Todd Ambs still serves on the Great Lakes Commission, Great Lakes Protection Fund and the Upper Mississippi River Basin Association. (WI).

The agenda also includes a panel on cleaning in place (CIP) innovations, with Graham Broadhurst, Vice President of Engineering at Briggs of Burton USA, Linda Rastani of Alfa Laval, and Pete Fernholz of Ecolab; Jaime Jurado, director of brewery operations for the Gambrinus Company, discussing waste-to-energy systems; Thomas Pape of the Alliance for Water Efficiency on conducting water audits; Stone Brewing Co.'s case history on wastewater treatment presented by Bill Sherwood; brewmaster John Haggerty of New Holland Brewing Co., Grand Rapids, MI, speaking on effluent reduction and Fred Scheer, Voith Meri, and a panel with Karl Crave of Crave Bros. Cheese Co., Franco Milani of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Brian Driscoll of the Wisconsin State Office of Energy Independence on waste-to-energy opportunities for brewers and cheesemakers.

Sponsors for the all-volunteer conference include Briggs of Burton Inc. USA, process engineering experts for the brewing industry since 1732; Ecolab, food safety and sanitation products for the dairy, food and beverage industries; and Alfa Laval, producers of centrifuges, fluid handling, cost-saving tank cleaning equipment and filtration systems. Partners include the Alliance for Water Efficiency, Brewing News and the River Network.

Online registration for the conference in Madison, WI, October 18-19, features a one day pass for Monday’s sessions at $175, including a craft beer and cheese tasting at the award-winning Old Fashioned Tavern, and the full conference including bus tours, is $295.00. For more details, and online registration, please visit the conference website: http://www.conserve-greatlakes.com

Rochester Museum & Science Center opens new watershed exhibit - timely for us!

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 23:21:19 GMT

NEW! Watershed Exhibit in Expedition Earth —Opens March 19
Developed by the RMSC with the Water Education Collaborative and the Monroe County Stormwater Coalition
Investigate how stormwater pollution impacts our watershed, and discover how you can be part of the solution! This new hands-on exhibit reveals specific actions we can take to improve water quality in our community.

Recommended by Lew Bryson, Seen Through a Glass blog

Tue, 16 Mar 2010 17:47:25 GMT

A nice recommendation for the workshop from beer writer Lew Bryson, author of many guide books, including NY Breweries and PA breweries. He's traversed the back roads of NY and PA often enough to know just what kind of impact fracking will have on rural small businesses such as farmstead breweries:

http://lewbryson.blogspot.com/2010/03/brewing-water-fracking-and-great-lakes.html

Briggs of Burton Inc and Ecolab join as sponsors, MBAA WNY meeting here

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 17:29:21 GMT

Thanks to Briggs of Burton Inc., headquartered in Rochester, NY for their generous support of the reception. The craft beer and artisan cheese tasting and reception will be held at the Pittsford Wegmans store, from 5-7pm in the Tastings special event space, with craft beer selections from attending breweries, including Custom BrewCrafters, Great Lakes Brewing Co., High Falls Brewery, Ithaca Beer Co, Saranac and more, plus American Cheese Society gold medal cheeses such as Carr Valley and Yancey's Fancy. Beer buyer Mark Spagnola will be attending the event as well. Tasting tickets are $20 each.

Thanks to Ecolab for their generous support of the hospitality provided by Creative Caterers at the Rochester Museum & Science Center - join us for a continental breakfast as registration begins at 8 AM,

And thanks to the MBAA Western NY chapter, which has reserved the workshop date in lieu of their regular monthly membership meeting.

cheers, Lucy

Alfa Laval USA to sponsor the Rochester Water Conservation Workshop, March 26

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 14:29:24 GMT

We are thrilled to announce that Alfa Laval USA is a sponsor for the Water Conservation Workshop at the Rochester Museum & Science Center. Both John Berardino, Brewery Manager based in Warminster, PA, and Linda A. Rastani, Tank Equipment Manager, based in Kenosha, WI, will co-present a panel on CIP processes for brewers and cheesemakers. Their support makes possible advertisements in Cheese Market News and Great Lakes Brewing News, as well as our space at the Rochester Museum & Science Center. Many thanks for the generous help from Alfa Laval USA!

There are still sponsor opportunities for the hospitality breakfast, lunch, and beer and cheese tasting after the workshop. Please contact lucysaunders@mac.com for more information.

Feature article now online at New Brewer magazine, Brewers Association

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 14:24:22 GMT

http://www.brewersassociation.org/pages/publications/the-new-brewer/online-extras/show?title=crafting-a-sustainable-future

An "online extra" feature discussing the October 2009 Great Lakes Craft Brewers & Water Conservation Conference, written by Michael Horne of milwaukeeworld.com, with additional reporting by Tom Geilfuss, who helped organize the conference in 2009

Call for speakers, Rochester NY water conservation workshop 3/26/10

Tue, 05 Jan 2010 12:56:04 GMT

As an independent consultant, I am organizing a one-day workshop on water conservation and wastewater treatment, on March 26, 2010, in Rochester NY, at the Rochester Museum and Science Center. I am inviting brewers interested in speaking on the topics of water savings in the brewhouse, and wastewater treatment, to send me a proposal by January 15, email lucysaunders@mac.com.

Your proposal should include a one-page summary outline of your talk, target 45-55 minutes in length. Until I have found full sponsors for the workshop, I am unable to offer speaker stipends, so please be prepared to pay for your own travel. The workshop registration fee will be waived for speakers. If you are interested in sponsorship, please send me a note.

Thanks to everyone who attended the Great Lakes Craft Brewers & Water Conservation Conference in October 2009, especially our sponsor, the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co. Dick Leinenkugel, Secretary of Commerce for the state of Wisconsin, gave the keynote address, and Jake Leinenkugel, president of the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co. spoke at the SPLASH! Reception at Discovery World. Attendees enjoyed presentations from Bridgeport Brewing Co. (Jeff Edgerton); MillerCoors Brewing Co. (Troy Rysewyk), New Glarus Brewing Co. (Dan Carey), Odell Brewing Co. (Doug Odell), and Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. (Fred Strachan), Todd Ambs, director of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Robin Shepard of the UWEX, and many others. A half-day tour of the New Glarus Brewing Co. included lunch and tastings donated by president Deb Carey and "behind the ropes" tours with Dan Carey and Randy Barr. Many thanks to everyone who contributed to this all-volunteer run event.

A review of the October conference appears in this month’s Great Lakes Brewing News and copies of presentations from key speakers are posted online at conserve-greatlakes.com, under the speakers bios.

Online registration for the Rochester workshop will be announced with the schedule of confirmed speakers later this month. Early registration fee will be $55 per person until March 1, 2010, and $75 per person thereafter. Registration is limited to 150 attendees. Thank you for your support of water conservation, craft brewing and the Great Lakes,
Lucy Saunders
F&B Communications LLC
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Cover story in Great Lakes Brewing News

Mon, 04 Jan 2010 15:05:09 GMT

Blogs about GLCB water conservation conference at Discovery World

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 10:50:20 GMT

Here's a link to a blog, the Thirsty Brewmaster, who attended the first day of the conference at Discovery World:

http://www.thirstybrewmaster.com/2009/10/great-lakes-craft-brewers-water.html

And here's a link to an article by speaker Ashley Routson, aka the Beer Wench, about the conference and the industry's need for water conservation, including more global water stats:

http://ashleyroutson.hoppress.com/2009/11/18/great-lakes-craft-brewers-water-conservation-conference/

Portland Oregon's water bureau cites the conference for brewery water conservation

Sat, 14 Nov 2009 13:33:29 GMT

As someone who enjoys Portland, OR's fabled Beervana, here's a link from the city's Water Bureau blog, which mentions this conference:

http://www.portlandonline.com/water/index.CFM?a=269259&c=39678&nocache=1

Articles and next year's events - save the dates October 18-19, 2010

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:40:47 GMT

Thanks to everyone who made the first year of the conference such a success, especially our platinum sponsors, The Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co., and Beer Capitol Distributing Inc. Here are links to articles written about the conference:

From the Chicago Tribune, October 27, by John Schmid

From the Wisconsin State Journal, October 25, by Barry Adams

From the blog, Drink with the Wench, by Ashley Routson, a review of the Great Lakes Brewing Co.'s sustainability initiatives and tasting notes about their Christmas Ale

From the column, Joe Sixpack, in the Philadelphia Daily News, by Don Russell

Great Lakes Town Hall - story about SPLASH!

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 13:51:00 GMT

Here's a link to a mention of SPLASH! on the Great Lakes Town Hall blog by Gary Wilson of the Biodiversity Project - very nice reminder as just 150 tickets are left for the public tasting:

http://greatlakestownhall.org/forums/community-bulletin/3514

Crave Brothers Cheese Co. makes a SPLASH! with biogas energy - visit from Obama Administration Officials today!

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 22:04:27 GMT

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Nancy Sutley, and Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle will tour Crave Brothers Farm and Dairy Operation in Waterloo, Wisconsin Friday to see bioenergy in action.

Crave Brothers is an example of a successfully operated modern dairy, using green energy sources to power the farm, cheese factory and 120 area homes. Crave Brothers Dairy Farm and its cheesemaking enterprise, Crave Brothers Farmstead Cheese, have a computer-controlled anaerobic digester system that generates electricity from biogas created by organic waste from their 750 pampered and productive Holsteins.

The Administration and State officials will discuss the opportunities for rural America to embrace science and lead efforts to create clean energy jobs, achieve energy independence, mitigate climate change, and transition to a clean energy economy.

Congratulations to the Crave family - and sign up to meet Debbie and George Crave in person at SPLASH! on October 26, 5-8 PM, Discovery World, Milwaukee.

SPLASH! celebrate water conservation and craft brewing, Discovery World, 10/26 5-8 PM

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 15:26:00 GMT

Waterlife - documentary about Great Lakes at Milwaukee Film Festival

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 17:15:03 GMT

The Milwaukee Film Festival will feature two screenings of the powerful documentary about the Great Lakes, Waterlife. The film screens this Saturday Sept 26 at 7 pm at the Oriental Theatre as well as Tues Sept 29 at 5 pm at the North Shore Cinema; details at www.milwaukee-film.org.

"A stunning ode to the natural beauty and environmental crisis surrounding the last great supply of fresh water on Earth. Five Great Lakes. One Last Chance. Under assault on all fronts by a deadly combination of industrial toxins, sewage, invasive species, climate change, and profound apathy, the Great Lakes are on the verge of irreversible collapse. Toronto filmmaker Kevin McMahon reveals the extraordinary beauty, ecological complexity, and extreme state of distress of our local waters. A must-see for the 35 million people along the Third Coast who drink from the lakes, swim in the lakes and depend on their waters for survival. Narrated by The Tragically Hip's Gord Downie and featuring music by Sam Roberts, Sufjan Stevens, Sigur Ros, Robbie Robertson and Brian Eno. Waterlife is a dire warning in the vessel of a tone poem, simultaneously a lyrical paean to the lakes' lingering beauty and a relentless documentation of their rising toxicity. "-- Rick Groen, The Globe and Mail

Sponsors announced for the Great Lakes Craft Brewers & Water Conservation Conference

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 08:07:29 GMT

Here's a link to the press release from Reuters about the platinum sponsors, The Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co. and Beer Capitol Distributing Inc.

http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS132709+09-Sep-2009+PRN20090909

Water pumping from Lake Huron - link to news from Josh Rubin

Sun, 30 Aug 2009 12:49:47 GMT

Here's news of Genesee County, given the go-ahead on pumping up to 85 million gallons of water daily from Lake Huron, forwarded by Josh Rubin, beer writer for the Toronto Star:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-mi-lakehuronwithdraw,0,2532075.story

Water is meant to be returned to the Lake, mixed with groundwater, in greater supply than the withdrawals.

news link - GLCB Water Conservation Conference in Small Business Times

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 08:29:49 GMT

http://www.biztimes.com/daily/2009/8/19/craft-brewers-will-focus-on-water-conservation-at-milwaukee-conference