The Bright Brewery is a key business in Bright in north eastern Victoria. It has grown steadily over the years, and has an impressive operation in a fantastic location. The brewery is connected to the community, supporting local musicians, and many initiatives, like bike rides and events, and recently the Bright Festival of Photography. It financially supports many initiatives in north east Victoria.

It also has a strong commitment to sustainability:

“Our commitment to the local environment is integral to who we are. (Co-founder) Scott’s passion and enthusiasm for sustainable practices is embraced across the business. Bright Brewery is part of this close knit community and wholly believes in looking after its natural resources as best we can.

Sustainability is one of our three core values and it has been right from the start.

Bright Brewery’s sustainability mission:

  • To make our beer production as close to carbon neutral as possible.
  • Minimise our overall environmental footprint on Bright.

Bright Brewery marked its first step towards carbon neutrality, launching its solar energy generation by serving freshly brewed beer poured by the power of the sun”.

They have installed a 50kw Enphase solar system, covering 600 square metres of roof in 192 solar panels. In summer it generates more power than is used to power its brewhouse operations. Brewing is an energy intensive business and the next effort will be to find a sustainable option to provide the energy required to heat the brewery’s boiler, which is currently powered by natural gas and requires around 12 megawatt hours of power each month.

They are also taking a role in advocating for the craft brewing sector to act decisively to protect the environment. When entire industries get active, their impact is magnified. As Protect our Winters seeks to mobilise the snow sports community, Bright Brewery has been seeking to mobilise the craft brewing industry:

‘We have also called on the Australian craft brewing industry to put environmental sustainability on the national agenda and to work together on future-proofing such an energy intensive industry’.

It’s sustainability principles can be found here.