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Brewers Association to Pay Freight Costs to Return Members’ Lost Kegs

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Technical Brewing Projects Director

Chuck joined the Brewers Association staff in 2013 after a long career as a craft brewer. He opened Tennessee’s first brewpub, Boscos, in 1992. As an owner and director of brewery operations for Boscos Brewing Company, he opened additional brewpubs in Memphis, Nashville, and Little Rock, Arkansas. In 2007, Chuck opened and operated Ghost River Brewing in Memphis. He has served as chair of the Association of Brewers Board of Advisors, chair of the Association of Brewers Board of Directors, and was a member of the first Board of Directors for the Brewers Association. In his capacity as technical brewing projects manager, Chuck works with the Technical Committee and the safety, sustainability, quality, draught beer quality, engineering, and supply chain subcommittees to encourage and facilitate best practices in all phases of Brewers Association members' brewery operations.

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As the brewing community has grown, so has the number of lost kegs that have arrived at MicroStar’s quality services facility in Green Bay, Wis. For a limited time, the Brewers Association will pay one time freight charges to return any kegs currently in MicroStar’s inventory for BA member breweries that have not participated in the repatriation program (certain restrictions apply).

The issue of lost kegs costs every brewer between $0.46 and $1.37 per barrel of annual keg production. The high cost of keg loss directly impedes job growth, reduces brewer, distributor, and retailer profits and increases the retail price of American-made beer.

(Learn: Free Online Safety Training Includes Keg Cleaning and Filling Courses)

In 2013, the Technical committee formed the keg repatriation working group. The group’s goal was to help educate and provide resources to help lower keg loss in the industry. The outcome from this group’s work was content now found on KegReturn.com. This site provides information to help consumers, homebrewers, retailers, distributors, brewers, and scrap yards understand the issues surrounding lost kegs.

The keg repatriation project also led to a partnership with MicroStar. In the normal course of business of keg leasing, service, and repair, MicroStar receives and returns approximately 30,000 stray kegs per year. The company’s current stray keg inventory is over 15,000 kegs and they requested that the Brewers Association help facilitate the return of these lost kegs.

How to Find Lost Kegs

Breweries can visit KegReturn.com to see if MicroStar has any of your kegs in its inventory. The list currently shows the number and size of lost kegs for over 450 breweries. The next step is to contact Microstar to arrange for the return of your kegs.

If your brewery is not a member, but would like to join in order to take advantage of this benefit, contact the Brewers Association or sign up online.

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Link to author biography
Technical Brewing Projects Director

Chuck joined the Brewers Association staff in 2013 after a long career as a craft brewer. He opened Tennessee’s first brewpub, Boscos, in 1992. As an owner and director of brewery operations for Boscos Brewing Company, he opened additional brewpubs in Memphis, Nashville, and Little Rock, Arkansas. In 2007, Chuck opened and operated Ghost River Brewing in Memphis. He has served as chair of the Association of Brewers Board of Advisors, chair of the Association of Brewers Board of Directors, and was a member of the first Board of Directors for the Brewers Association. In his capacity as technical brewing projects manager, Chuck works with the Technical Committee and the safety, sustainability, quality, draught beer quality, engineering, and supply chain subcommittees to encourage and facilitate best practices in all phases of Brewers Association members' brewery operations.

See Chuck Skypeck's Articles