Sustainability
Sustainability is vital to how we approach our operations at Revolution. Over the years, we’ve made it our priority to improve our processes and move toward greener means of production.
Packaging Materials
Anti-Hero made the switch from plastic to paper, alongside other brews that represent more than 90 percent of our production.
Anti-Hero made the switch from plastic to paper, alongside other brews that represent more than 90 percent of our production.
Prioritizing sustainability means consistently looking for new ways to improve processes. Our newest investment in sustainability is the move from plastic six-pack rings to cardboard cartons. Cardboard has among the best recycling records of any packaging material. It's 100% recyclable, and when recycled into new products, those products see a 70% reduction in energy use.
The move to cartons required a retool of the canning line, a pause in production, and fundamental change to the look of our beers in the market. We are convinced that the shift was worth it to commit to a most environmentally conscious means of production.
We're also big fans of the way they look.
Water Usage and Wastewater
Our spent yeast and hops are trucked to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago as part of a treatment program intended to improve and stabilize the enhanced biological phosphorus removal process during water treatment. This more sustainable process aims at keeping cleaner waterways in Chicagoland.
Solid Waste and Spent Grain
Solid waste, mostly in the form of spent grain, is the number one item by mass that brewers create during the production process. From day one as a Brewpub until now, we've committed to keeping this material out of landfills. Our spent grains are hauled away by a family business in northwest Indiana and sold to farms around the region as livestock feed.
Energy Use and Production
The name of Sun Crusher, our Summer Ale, is a nod to the array of solar panels installed above the brewery. That 60 kilowatt system can generate 70,000 kWh of electricity and offset more than 50 tons of CO2 annually. In 2020, we generated the energy equivalent of 119 barrels of oil.
Rooftop Beehives
The brewery's only permanent residents reside on our rooftop year-round, maintained by our friends at The Hive. Nine hives, each with a their own queen, pollinate and produce fresh, local honey with the character of the neighborhood linden and locust trees.
When we make beers like Honey Jacket, we're able to use the honey generated by our rooftop colonies. Each hive produces sixty pounds (roughly a full five gallon bucket) during late summer every year.