FOREWORD

Dear Brewers, Dear Friends,

The unprecedented summer 2022 is now over. Once again, it has shown us how crucial the impact of climate change is for our sectors as harvests of raw materials have been impacted and will have consequences for breweries in the next months. This stresses how important it is for our value chain to invest massively into more sustainable systems, be it upstream (production of raw materials), in the brewery (production process, energy and heat recovery…) or downstream (beer distribution…). Investing in more sustainable production systems resonates amongst breweries of all sizes also from an economical perspective. The consequences of the war in Ukraine and sanctions imposed on Russia have led to a dramatic increase of energy prices on the one hand. On the other hand, some experts question the very availability of energy over the winter. In addition to the challenges posed by the energy crisis, there is another knock-on effect for the brewing sector with shortages of CO2 (a by-product of fertiliser production, also massively impacted by the sanctions). All these challenges figure high on the dashboard of the brewing sector for the next few months.

In this fourth edition of BrewUp Magazine you will find contributions that might help you navigate the current crisis. On the front of sustainability many breweries have already taken the lead. The interview of Jan-Paul Rutten, CEO of Gulpener in the Netherlands will surely be of inspiration as the brewery has been investing for a long time in sustainability and has proven to be successful both for the finances of the company and its environmental and societal impact. You will also be provided with guidance from the EBC on how CO2 can be replaced in the brewery. In addition to these points pertaining to sustainability from an environmental and business perspective, you will also discover how The Brewers of Europe is contributing to the societal sustainability of the brewing sector through the deployment of its initiative on diversity, equity and inclusion, with user-friendly tools destined for use by small breweries.

Whilst 2022 has been a year full of challenges, it has also been a year where brewers were able to physically meet for the 4th edition of the Brewers Forum together with the 38th edition of the EBC Congress (marking the 75th anniversary of EBC and the 100th anniversary of our Spanish Member Association, Cerveceros de España). A throwback article looks at this superb edition (in case you would have missed it). And we are also looking forward to the next edition of the Brewers Forum, to take place in Prague (Czech Republic), in-person again, from the 21st to the 24th of May 2023. I hope to see you all there!

Enjoy!

Lasse Aho President The Brewers of Europe