Brewery Creates Edible Six-Pack Rings Animals Can Actually Enjoy

Food

 | May 19, 2016 | By Margo Gothelf

A craft beer company from Delray Beach, Florida is hoping to help save the environment, one six-pack at a time.

Saltwater Brewery has put a spin on the typical plastic rings commonly seen on a six-pack by making them environmentally friendly. Instead of using plastic, the company uses beer by-products, such as barley and wheat, to construct edible six-pack rings that help feed sea creatures rather than harm them. If the rings don’t end up in the ocean, they are also completely biodegradable and compostable.

Saltwater Brewery explained that their design is just as effective as plastic. The only downside to producing the environmentally-friendly rings is the cost. The company is hoping customers will jump on the bandwagon to pay a little more in order to help save the animals and have a positive impact on the environment.

“It’s a big investment for a small brewery created by fishermen, surfers and people that love the sea,” head of brand at Saltwater Brewery, Peter Agardy, explains in a promotional video (below).

The craft brewer is hoping more breweries will become involved, therefore allowing prices to decrease to make the product. If more companies and bigger investors get involved, production costs will decrease significantly allowing them to compete with the plastic rings currently being produced.

The common plastic rings have long been a bane to environmentalists and harm the planet immensely. A report from the journal PNAS shared, “about 90 percent of seabirds have eaten plastic and are likely to retain some in their gut.”

The Ocean Conservancy’s 2015 Ocean Trash index shared many startling numbers as well. According to the research, “volunteers found 57 marine mammals, 440 fish and 22 sharks, skates and sting rays entangled in plastic.”

The edible rings seem like a great idea with the only downside being production costs. If the beer industry is able to get onboard, it could have a big impact on the environment.