LUZERNE COUNTY, Pa. — There are a few necessary ingredients to craft a good beer, and one of them is carbon dioxide, also known as CO2.
It also plays a key role in beer production, something Susquehanna Brewing Company in Jenkins Township knows first-hand.
"You're offsetting and purging all of your tanks, purging all of your packaging, all of your hoses, everything. It is a vital instrument to what we do here. Without CO2, we'd be out of business," said Fred Maier, vice president of Susquehanna Brewing Company.
But supply issues are bubbling up once again after pandemic-related problems and contamination at one of the largest carbon dioxide production sites. That means some beer makers could soon see trouble brewing for production.
Brewmasters in Luzerne County say there is plenty of beer, and the carbon dioxide shortage hasn't made its way to northeastern Pennsylvania.
"So far, we've been safe from it, but it is geographically-based. To my knowledge, the bulk of the issues have been up in New England," Maier said.
Susquehanna Brewing Company gets its carbon dioxide from a supplier in upstate New York who keeps them up to date on how the supply chain is looking.
"We just upgraded our holding facility, so we tripled our holding capacity, and they can check our levels automatically. If they have any spare with a truck coming by, they stop and top us off, so we've made investments to increase our supply."
Like all of the supply issues we've faced, brewers say the CO2 shortage could eventually trickle our way.
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