By Andrew Amiri, Neil Sosebee and Derek Davy
Over 4,500 licensed craft brewers are revitalizing small towns across North America, with revenues estimated at more than CDN$30 billion per year. As one of the fastest growing sectors of the food and beverage industry, small breweries are supporting local economies, creating jobs and contributing to tourism. At the same time, craft brewery wastewater is creating a challenge for aging wastewater treatment infrastructure.
Craft brewery wastewater challenges
It is common for craft breweries to create five to ten times more wastewater than the beer they package and sell. The impact of this on a wastewater treatment plant can be equivalent to 10,000 – 20,000 people. For most small towns, the municipal plant is not designed to handle that much load. Municipalities are faced with the difficult decision of supporting growth in a local business or imposing fines to cover the cost of treating this high strength wastewater.
In 2015, the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, through the Bloom Centre for Sustainability, engaged Econse Water Purification Systems to design a wastewater treatment system that could meet the specific needs of the craft brewing industry. After pilot testing at four craft breweries in Ontario, Econse introduced their Brü Clean System at the recent Ontario Centres of Excellence – OCE Discovery conference in Toronto.
Brü Clean is a modular, chemical-free system designed for easy installation and maintenance, making wastewater management simple and efficient for craft breweries. It overcomes a variety of challenges in this sector, such as:
ESTABLISH YOUR BREWERY AS A SUSTAINABILITY LEADERSeptember 18, 2025 - 4:27 pm
HELPING BENCH BREWERY REACH THEIR ZERO-WASTE GOALS
BlogSustainability is no longer a “nice to have” for craft brewing — it’s a necessity for the success of their business. We’re proud to work with brewers like Bench Brewing Company who have embraced sustainable practices not simply to meet regulations, but because it’s the right thing to do for their customers, their community, and the planet.
Check out their featured article in Water Canada, discussing their zero-waste ambitions and how Econse is helping them reach that goal through compact, affordable wastewater treatment solutions.
Bench and Econse selected as finalists in Water Canada Awards 2023!
Blog, Top NewsExciting news!
Econse Water Technologies and Bench Brewing Company are honored to be nominated as a finalist for the Water Canada Awards in the wastewater category!
We are so grateful for this recognition and proud of our team’s dedication in
revolutionizing on-site wastewater treatment.
Thank you, Water Canada for
providing a platform that celebrates innovation in the water sector.
Congratulations to all the finalists!
Brewing up support in Kawartha Conservation’s watershed
Top NewsThe Global Liquid Waste Management Market is expected to grow by $ 32.29 bn during 2022-2026 progressing at a CAGR of 6.17% during the forecast period
Top NewsEconse: Helping Solve Water Challenges
BlogIG Alumni, Econse, is creating the next generation of technologies to help solve the world’s most critical water challenges. Derek Davy, CEO, leads this cleantech company that is building waste water treatment solutions for multiple industries to help them reduce their footprint. The technology is helping companies across North America making water stewardship easier.
Read the complete article HERE
Brewery Wastewater Treatment on a Farm
Case StudiesBench Brewery is located on a rural farm in the Niagara region of Ontario, Canada. Please visit them at: https://benchbrewing.com
This is the story of how Econse helped Bench grow sustainably with our BruClean System that treats and reuses all their wastewater generated from the brewing process with zero waste.
To learn more please contact info@econse.com
Craft Beer Wastewater Treatment
Case StudiesFenelon Falls Brewery is located north of Toronto, Ontario in the beautiful Kawartha Lakes Region. https://www.fenelonfallsbrewing.com
When COVID-19 hit, Craft Brewers helped hold many communities together by staying open and even delivering beer to those in need. Many small businesses had to pivot to keep their operations going with a reduced staff. One thing Fenelon didn’t have to worry about was their wastewater! The small, compact automated BrüClean system treated their wastewater and reduced the burden on the town during the Lockdown and beyond.
Econse is proud to help local businesses grow sustainably with our technology. To learn more contact info@econse.com
Cheers!
Cleaning Craft Beer Wastewater
BlogECONSE at the annual Discovery conference in downtown Toronto, BNN’s Kristina Partsinevelos speaks with the co-founder of Brü Clean System, a wastewater treatment system for craft brewers.
Click here to view the interview
Canadian Brewery Awards
BlogECONSE will be speaking at the CBA’s in Vancouver on May 27th, 2016.
What is a “sustainable brewery”? How do you achieve the triple bottom line goals of social, environmental and financial responsibility? The panel will discuss how breweries are attempting to find this balance through ingredients selection, environmentally friendly production methods, and community-oriented programming
Learn More Here
Environmental Science & Engineering Magazine June 2016 issue.
BlogBy Andrew Amiri, Neil Sosebee and Derek Davy
Over 4,500 licensed craft brewers are revitalizing small towns across North America, with revenues estimated at more than CDN$30 billion per year. As one of the fastest growing sectors of the food and beverage industry, small breweries are supporting local economies, creating jobs and contributing to tourism. At the same time, craft brewery wastewater is creating a challenge for aging wastewater treatment infrastructure.
Craft brewery wastewater challenges
It is common for craft breweries to create five to ten times more wastewater than the beer they package and sell. The impact of this on a wastewater treatment plant can be equivalent to 10,000 – 20,000 people. For most small towns, the municipal plant is not designed to handle that much load. Municipalities are faced with the difficult decision of supporting growth in a local business or imposing fines to cover the cost of treating this high strength wastewater.
In 2015, the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, through the Bloom Centre for Sustainability, engaged Econse Water Purification Systems to design a wastewater treatment system that could meet the specific needs of the craft brewing industry. After pilot testing at four craft breweries in Ontario, Econse introduced their Brü Clean System at the recent Ontario Centres of Excellence – OCE Discovery conference in Toronto.
Brü Clean is a modular, chemical-free system designed for easy installation and maintenance, making wastewater management simple and efficient for craft breweries. It overcomes a variety of challenges in this sector, such as: