Jared Murphy
Victoria Metlege
Ryan Grant
Rhonda Walsh
Dalhousie University
deryk stec
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Unfiltered Brewing is a Halifax based business that seeks to provide the best tasting and most high-quality beer for customers. The implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) plays a central role in the business’ mission. The Unfiltered Team feels that quality comes from all states of the product, which includes pre-production, consumption, as well as post-production. Special attention is put into the reuse and responsible disposal of products. Most notably, Unfiltered is in alignment with the twelfth SDG, Responsible Consumption and Production. This is essential to eliminating negative impacts to the environment and human health. This goal aims for the efficient use of resources, the separation of economic growth from environmental destruction, and overall doing more and better with less. Unfiltered also embodies United Nation goals five, six, and sixteen, namely Gender Equality, Clean Water and Sanitation, as well as Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions.
One particularly interesting innovation of Unfiltered Brewing is the sending away of their spent grain to be used as feed for the insects that are used on salmon farms. Spent grain is the barley malt and grain that is steeped with hops to make beer. It is the natural and necessary bi-product of the brewing process. No brewery can dodge it, but they do have the power to decide what to do with it. Unfortunately, many breweries choose to compost it, which although a better environmental choice than other disposal methods, does not directly benefit the environment or the community. When the brewery opened, Andrew and Nash knew that they wanted to find a way for this bi-product to be used for good. So, they partnered with a waste disposal company in Halifax that repurposed it to make methane fuel on experimental farms in need of a super clean fermentable material. A few years later, they decided to instead partner with Oberland Agriscience who use it to feed insects for fish farming. This innovation relates directly to the owners’ passion for sustainability and environmental consciousness.
Nash also provides consultations to new breweries that are trying to get off the ground. For one, he believes this to be the right thing to do, given how rewarding the industry has been for him, he does however worry about the practices of some breweries. He said, “most breweries are not purposely pumping out poison and people in the craft beer community are very aware of hazardous things… but inexperience is really dangerous to the industry. They can easily be mixing chemicals, wasting water, wasting hops, and improperly disposing of waste without even knowing it.”
The next thing that the owners are looking into is a water purification system for their wastewater. After spent grain, which accounts for 85% of the brewery’s waste, water is the biggest factor. With a proper purification system, it could be reused. The only other major source of waste that Nash mentioned is cardboard, which they try to counteract by using the large boxes to package can orders for businesses.
Brewer's spent grain is a biproduct of the brewing industry & accounts for 85% of brewing waste. Unfiltered Brewing designates theirs to feeding farm insects, the ultimate sustainable solution.
Nash said that he was not specifically inspired by anyone, but that he definitely looks up to some of the breweries that he worked with and visited in western Canada. He told us, “the scene just developed out there first. It isn’t really Atlantic Canada’s fault that they are behind in terms of technology because craft brewing has not been a thing here for nearly as long.”
Since Nash was not in charge of daily operations at the Nova Scotia breweries he worked for, he had no ability to influence their environmental decisions. He told us, “I mean, it’s pretty hard to convince a business to look into getting rid of something a different way when the city already arranges to have it taken away” … “but I always knew that I wanted to find a way to use it for good when I had my own place.” Therefore, he made it a top priority when Unfiltered opened.
The overall impact of their innovation includes benefit to the business itself, their community and the environment. The community can enjoy delicious beer while also knowing that compared to other breweries, their purchase is helping the environment. From the environmental perspective, Unfiltered is contributing to less waste and a more ethical and sustainable brewing industry. As a leading brewery in Canada, they are setting a great example with their innovation and their ambition to positively impact the world.
In 2022, people know how important it is to spend money in alignment with their values. With over 70 microbreweries in the province, Nova Scotians are truly able to pick and choose which businesses they buy from. Nash believes that their environmental initiatives are one of the reasons that they are so successful. He told us, “the beer is great, and we are doing what we can to help the community and the environment” … “at this point, we can barely keep up with the demand. We will need to add more tanks or move to a new place soon.” From this, it is clear that Unfiltered’s approach is a key factor in the business’ success.
Unfiltered does an incredible job executing the UN’s SDG #12 of ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns; its environmental impact has been evident. As much as possible, they are careful not to contribute to pollution or waste products. This is ensured by their innovative process of disposing of their spent grain to insect farms. Further, they contribute to the UN’s SDG #6, to ensure the availability and sustainable management of water, by preventing water waste within their business.
In terms of social impact, Unfiltered is an equal opportunity employer, hiring from all backgrounds, genders, and orientations. Although this should just be a given for businesses in 2022, it does reach the most basic level of the UN’s SDG #5 to achieve gender equality. One interesting thing that Nash spoke on is that in 2016, Unfiltered launched court action against the Nova Scotia Liquor Commission (NSLC). The NSLC imposes a markup fee on the sale of every litre of beer and requires businesses to purchase a permit. According to Nash, the fee is an “unlegislated tax grab” and it makes it really hard for small businesses in the community. Although they lost their legal battle, and an appeal since then, this relates to the UN’s SDG #16 to build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels. They are doing what they can to hold institutions responsible.
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Greg Nash, Brewmaster
Unfiltered Brewing is a microbrewery located in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The business has been operating since the summer of 2015. It is owned by Allison Kearns, Andrew Murphy and Greg Nash. Greg Nash is a well-known brewer in Halifax. Aside from his professional education in brewing strategy, Nash has always had a passion for homebrewing, which fostered into a desire to brew independently, and Unfiltered was the perfect canvas. To help make his dream a reality, Nash teamed up with Kearns and Murphy. Andrew Murphy is a well-established photographer whose work is a keystone of the taprooms’ décor. He had a love for travelling to sites to taste test all the best beer available and sought to bring that quality locally for other beer enthusiasts. Allison Kearns shared the urge rooted in Murphy, that Halifax’s booming brewery scene could use a new high-quality addition. The Unfiltered team provides a locally brewed, unfiltered selection of craft beers, ensuring the use of only the best hops from across Canada. Their keystone beer, “Exile on North Street,” can be found at restaurants and bars across Halifax.