At Hop Nation, implementing sustainable practices isn’t just a nice add on or corporate catch phrase, it’s a necessary part of our ongoing business model. It’s no secret that the brewing industry can be incredibly wasteful, so we’re making every effort we can to minimise our environmental impact.

Reducing our environmental impact is an ongoing journey that continues to evolve, as we do. From the ingredients we use to the processes we implement and proactive sustainability initiatives, we’re always seeking out new ways to improve our efforts.

INGREDIENTS

It starts at the brewing process for us – we are focused on highlighting single origin ingredients in our beers. As such, we put careful thought into where these ingredients come from, how they are being farmed and how they get to market.

This means sourcing from companies that are transparent about their practices – and in particular those that are doing their best to mitigate pests naturally and manage their irrigation programs in sustainable and innovative ways.

SOLAR ENERGY

We use solar energy across our Footscray and Mornington production sites, with the aim to one day fuel 90% of our energy requirements through solar power. In 2021, we installed an 82kW Solar PV system made up of 182 solar panels at our Mornington brewery, which is enough to power approximately 60% of our electricity needs at the site.

This amounts to 99.9 metric tonnes of CO2-e a year—or the equivalent of planting 1,193 trees—which is probably a lot more efficient than planting saplings ourselves, although we’re doing that too! Looking towards the future, we’re engaging sustainability consultants to develop a battery section in Mornington and to help us reach our sustainability goals.

TREE PLANTING INITIATIVE

Over the last year, we kick started this initiative to plant native seedlings through organised staff planting days, with the aim to offset some of our C02 use at the brewery. We work with the Sunshine Reserve Committee, based in Mount Martha, and the Maribyrnong City Council to plant native seedlings in the areas local to our breweries.

In addition to this, we’re facilitating ongoing fundraisers to donate to the cause.

BREWING

Small-batch, commercial brewing itself has come a long way over the years and the facility we have linked with to brew our beers makes use of the latest modern equipment to promote water conservation and recycling during the brewing process.

Heat recovery is used throughout the system to maximise power use and by-products such as grain waste find new homes with local farmers to feed some pretty happy animals.

THE HEART FUNDRAISER

In May 2024, under the banner of Heart of the West / Heart of the Community, we are teamed up with our trade partners to raise funds for local environmental group Friends Of The Maribyrnong Valley.

Friends of the Maribyrnong Valley Inc. was formed in 1986 to preserve, protect and enhance the Maribyrnong River and its Valley Parklands. The group strongly believes that, as custodians, we must all work together to safeguard this irreplaceable community asset for future generations to enjoy.

We're proud to share that we raised over $4,000 for their project and look forward to supporting them further with a Hop Nation tree planting day in September.

GRAIN SILO

From January 2024, the majority of malt arriving at Hop Nation will go directly in our new 25 tonne grain silo. Per delivery, this will reduce our packaging waste by 1000 bags. Likewise, with bulk deliveries, transport emissions are reduced.

The silo project also sees a move to locally grown barley, malted in Geelong, reducing our transport footprint from previous suppliers who were further afield.

GRANTS

In August 2024, we received Energy Efficiency Grants for Small and Medium Enterprises from the Australian Government.

The grant funding will be used to upgrade the current production method for beer, utilising modern heat transfer technology. As part of our larger focus on sustainability this will continue to evolve out energy efficiency practices resulting in a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

LOCAL

Lastly, we continue to build a symbiotic relationship with our community, even as we’ve expanded over two sites. We support local restaurants and merchants as much as possible – and we have been lucky enough to receive the same support back.

We love seeing our product on the shelves and taps of our neighbours – all working to promote a thriving and creative Melbourne culinary scene.