By: Lauren Theisen
The full circle process from farm, to brewery, and back to the farm that local breweries across the Midwest are taking advantage of.
Over the last 20 years, the “brewery boom” has expanded into nearly every corner of the country as more consumers want to enjoy locally made, hand-crafted beer. That leaves a question on the table: Where are brewers getting their ingredients from?
In Des Moines, Iowa some breweries are choosing to source their products from the other states across the Midwest.
“Whether it’s transportation costs, ingredient quality, or just ease of distribution, there’s an abundance of agricultural products around us that makes choosing local a pretty simple choice,” said Keaton Scott, Head Brewer at Big Grove Brewery in Des Moines.
Choosing local is a full circle, win-win process. It’s a win for the rural farmers growing the grains and hops, a win for the brewers, like Big Grove, who can buy and sell products made from local ingredients, and a win for the farmers raising livestock, who can repurpose the leftover ingredients.
“Brewing is a very resource-intensive process,” said Scott.
Big Grove originated in eastern Iowa in 2013 in the small town of Solon. From there, the company only grew, expanding into Iowa City, Cedar Rapids, and, most recently, the capital city, Des Moines. In 2022, the company planted its roots in the historic Sherman Hills neighborhood on the west side of the downtown metro area, where it serves food and drinks, provides over 100 jobs for local residents, offers an event space for the community to gather, and creates hand-crafted beer on location for the Des Moines community to sip and savor.
Brewing beer requires four essential ingredients: grain (such as barley, corn, rye, wheat, and oats), hops (used to bitter and add flavor), yeast (used in the fermentation process), and water. All of these ingredients can be found on farms across Iowa and the Midwest.
Investing in these locally sourced products comes with significant benefits across the board. Farmers can earn a profit, while breweries save time, money, and resources in transportation and shipping costs. Plus, they get the satisfaction of knowing exactly where their ingredients are coming from. Consumers benefit by getting the unique chance to know that by purchasing a beer or two, they not only enjoy a fun night out but are investing in a product that continues to provide jobs to farmers, brewers, and their employees.
“I think we’ve seen, in the past couple decades, especially the last 10 years or so, a push for consumers wanting to support local,” Scott said. “Going to the source, whether it be at Big Grove or another local brewery, you can almost guarantee that it’s going to be fresher than something that’s been imported, and you can see who has their hands on the product and see that it serves local jobs in the local community.”
The brewery boom has also given a big boost to the economy. According to The Iowa Brewers Guild website, the craft brewing industry supports about 1,500 jobs statewide. Additionally, in 2022, Iowa’s craft breweries generated over 1 billion dollars in economic impact through breweries, wholesale merchandise suppliers, and retailers.
“Craft brewing has seen a huge explosion over the last decade or so, and we’re really committed to innovation and growing those partners [between farmers and brewers] because we’re an important part of the Iowa economy and we want to continue to find those relationships and build community,” said Noreen Otto, executive director of the Iowa’s Brewers Guild.
The Iowa Brewers Guild is a nonprofit trade organization that brings together craft beer and craft cider breweries across the state and advocates for them on a legislative level.
“When breweries are looking for advocacy about a certain state law or they run into issues and obstacles legislatively, we are the organization that has a voice for the whole industry,” Otto said.
In 2022, the IBG helped advocate for a bill that would allow breweries to serve craft beer at Iowa festivals for consumption. At that time, Iowa law stated that breweries were only allowed to pour craft beer at a licensed facility. Governor Kim Reynolds signed the bill into law in June 2022, and breweries are now able to pour at alternative locations.
The efforts made by the IBG on the statehouse floor come from a desire for fostering connection between the hundreds of breweries scattered throughout the state.
“It’s not just about the beer that’s in the glass, but it’s about the importance of coming together with people in your community,” Otto said.
And that’s what this industry is all about. From farm to fermenter to glass, there is just one more stop in the win-win-win process – back to the farm.
Every few weeks, farmer Larry Lorton drives his truck and trailer from Indianola to downtown Des Moines, making two stops: Big Grove Brewery and Lua Brewing. It’s not to enjoy a cold glass of hand-crafted beer but rather a business trip.
Lorton owns a 160-acre farm in Warren County, where he raises 50 head of cattle. After seeing a Facebook post from Lua asking for farmers to take their leftover grain, he gave them a call and said he would take it. A year later, he made the same deal with Big Grove.
“I call it cattle cocaine…they just come running. It’s crazy, but they love it,” Lorton said.
Lorton picks up a combined 1,500 pounds of wet grain, the by-product of brewing, from Lua and Big Grove every couple of weeks. The best part is it’s completely free.
Lorton feeds his cattle this grain in addition to hay. Because of how fattening the grain tends to be, it takes pressure off providing high-quality hay.
“The feed is really high in protein and pretty low on sugar, so you don’t have to worry about giving them any medical problems like bloating,” Lorton said.
Bloating happens when cattle consume too much sugar and their bodies stop processing it. This causes their bellies to gas up and often leads to death. That’s why the leftover grain from breweries is the perfect fit.
“In the process of making beer, they want the sugar out of it, and I want the protein out of it, so it works out nice,” said Lorton.
It’s a full-circle process. Farm to fermentation to glass and back to the farm, the field to foam production ouches thousands of Iowans across the state daily. Whether someone is on a tractor tending to the fields, in the back of the brewery mixing up the magic, or sitting at the bar pouring back a cold one, each individual is just a small part of Iowa’s larger craft beer boom.