The recent 6th Annual Good Food Awards- which took place right here in San Francisco- recognized the partnership of Milwaukee’s Lakefront Brewery as well as Milwaukee’s Growing Power, to create locally-sourced, sustainably-produced beer- a product that consumers can really enjoy all aspects of! “Lakefront Brewery was one of 14 breweries recognized at the event, which honors food/drink producers and the farmers whose products are judged to be authentic, responsibly produced and good tasting.” A partnership between Will Allen’s Growing Power, and Milwaukee’s exceedingly popular Lakefront Brewery, is long overdue; the two have been exchanging ideas for about 15 years now. Allen, a 2008 MacArthur fellow, recognizes that “the unhealthy diets of low-income, urban populations, and such related health problems as obesity and diabetes, largely are attributable to limited access to safe and affordable fresh fruits and vegetables. Rather than embracing the “back to the land” approach promoted by many within the sustainable agriculture movement, Allen’s holistic farming model incorporates both cultivating foodstuffs and designing food distribution networks in an urban setting.” Lakefront Brewery, for their part, became the first USDA-certified organic brewery in 1996, and is a staple of 414 culture.
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“In 2001, Growing Power began using away the brewery’s spent grain for composting, and in turn, Lakefront Brewery provided beer tastings at the farm’s seminars. The two organizations “grew to see each other not only as business partners, but as social activists in bringing good food, grown and produced locally and sustainably, to our communities,” Russ Klisch stated. “It is hard to image anyone else in Milwaukee that shares our values more than Growing Power,” he concluded.”
Shout out to Milwaukee for their forward thinking partnership and socially responsible enjoyable beers!