When beer ferments, the interaction of yeast and sugars produces carbon dioxide, which is partly responsible for climate change. The gas enters the air as a waste byproduct – unless it’s captured.

Breweries also buy carbon dioxide in tanks, and it’s not cheap. The gas is pumped into bottled, canned or draft beer to produce carbonization. Breweries also use carbon dioxide to force oxygen out of beer packaging, where it can spoil the beer over time. (Fermentation also produces alcohol as a byproduct, but that compound is eventually captured by the consumer).

Enter Earthly Labs. The Austin, Texas-based startup was founded in 2018 to provide carbon capture technology to microbreweries.

“The technology in general has been around for a long time,” said Dave Kroening, co-founder of Buoy Beer Co. in Astoria. “It was common for large breweries to have it.”

Buoy Beer Co. recently purchased an Earthly Labs system. In a smaller, less costly package, Kroening said, carbon capture “suddenly becomes very doable.”

Political pressure is increasing on all industries – including construction – to reduce carbon emissions. A major cap-and-trade scheme has been halted in the Oregon Legislature by Republican walkouts.

Meanwhile, there are some solutions brewing for the private sector. Canadian company CarbonCure has devised technology to inject carbon dioxide into concrete mixes, reducing the amount of concrete needed for projects. That technology has already been put to use in the Portland-metro area.

Double Mountain Brewery & Cidery, meanwhile, is believed to be the first brewery to Oregon to install a small-scale carbon capture machine. The Hood River business got its Earthly Labs equipment up and running in January.

Buoy Beer Co. has followed suit, ordering its own machine, though it has not yet been installed. Kroening said he expects it’ll be operational sometime in July.

Besides the environmental benefits of capturing carbon, the breweries’ owners were persuaded by the return on investment. Produced carbon dioxide is scarce nationwide, and suppliers have raised prices.

“We’ve been getting some rather frightening letters from our supplier telling us they’re going to triple our prices – if they can get us CO₂ at all,” said Matt Swihart, owner and brewer of Double Mountain.

Earthly Labs’ CiCi machines arrive on a few pallets. The main box can be plugged in. A hose runs from the bottom of what would be a blow-off bucket on a fermenting tank to the box, which purifies the carbon dioxide for beverage-grade use.

“It’s a better product, and it’s obviously reducing CO₂ emissions and saving us costs, because we’re not having to purchase this raw material,” Kroening said.

The CiCi system, featuring patented technology, costs roughly $75,000 to $100,000, depending on components and options. Swihart said he expects Double Mountain’s machine to pay for itself in three to four years.

Amy George, Earthly Labs’ CEO, founded the company after observing carbon capture in the energy industry. The company is organized as a public benefit corporation.

“My vision has been to create businesses that address environmental problems with market-driven solutions,” she said.

The CiCi machine purchased by Double Mountain and Buoy is called the Oak. Two other models named Teak and Elm are in development for smaller and larger breweries, respectively.

With increased costs for carbon dioxide affecting brewery owners, some are talking to George.

“We’re seeing more interest,” she said.

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