How DEYA Brewing are tackling their carbon emissions

Introduction

It’s summer 2022, we’ve just had one of the hottest and driest years ever in the UK and climate change is right here in our faces and our fields. There’s no doubt that we should be taking action to cut emissions and become more sustainable, but what does that look like for the brewing industry?

The UK brewing industry is currently responsible for 2.2 million tonnes of CO2e every year. That’s a lot of emissions, but it also presents a lot of opportunities to tackle the problem and make a difference too.

One of the companies looking to tackle the environmental footprint of their beer is DEYA brewing.

DEYA has worked closely with Zevero over the last few years to measure their carbon emissions, taking into account everything from the barley they use for great brews like Steady Rolling Man, to the materials in the final packaging and the way their employees get to work.

DEYA and Zevero met over a shared interest in protecting the planet whilst surfing, there isn’t a more compelling way to help you take action.

What’s happened since then?

Since the surf trip, Zevero and DEYA have worked together for the last few years. Now, DEYA is able to understand how much CO2e they emit to make each individual can of beer - technically termed a product carbon footprint. In fact, they were one of the first breweries in the UK to put the emissions for each can on their label. Talk about transparency.

‍

To make up for the unavoidable emissions DEYA has chosen to support a 65-hectare Welsh peatland restoration project to sequester carbon and improve biodiversity. Speaking about the project, Ben Woodliffe, sustainability manager at DEYA said ‘It’s a great project that we’re proud to support. We also worked out that it would cost just 1p per can of beer we sell to remove the equivalent emissions, it was a no-brainer.’

What’s next for DEYA?

Knowing that just measuring and offsetting their emissions isn’t enough, DEYA is working with Zevero to build a climate programme to cut emissions. Tackling their biggest sources of emissions like malt, cans and natural gas usage.

They’re also looking at small changes like encouraging employees to walk or cycle to work, using 100% recycling and publishing monthly newsletters with the latest company emission stats to keep up awareness. On a wider scale, the company is now completely powered by hydro and wind energy. It has also become a Zero to Landfill company, meaning that no waste ever ends up in the landfill and whatever can't be recycled is instead incinerated to generate energy.

DEYA is showing thatcraft breweries care about sustainability and are taking genuine action to reduce their impact. Let’s drink to that.

‍