Another shortage, this time of carbon dioxide gas

[Mike Nolan]

The WSJ says brewers, soft drink bottlers and other food processors are experiencing a severe shortage of carbon dioxide gas, which is a byproduct of ethanol production, among other things.

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[RiversideLen]

I read someplace that the craft beer industry was having difficulty getting their bubbles too. Might have to start stocking up.

[Mike Nolan]

Yeah, the craft brewers are suffering because they generally don't have the same depth of supply channels. A gas supplier can cut them off, they won't cut off a major brewery.

[skeptic7]

I can understand CO2 shortages for soft drink makers, but doesn't beer produce its own Carbon Dioxide from the action of the yeast?

[Mike Nolan]

Yes, the brewing process produces some CO2, but not enough for the bubbly head people expect from beer these days.

150 years ago, when people had beer buckets that they'd get filled up and drink from all day, carbonation was much lower. Home brewers talk about it a lot, I'm told.

Considering all the talk about carbon sequestration, you'd think they'd have a way to produce food quality CO2 while cleaning the air. Maybe that'll be the next technological miracle.

[RiversideLen]

I made beer once using a Mr. Beer kit. The bubbles in the final product are made with a second fermentation, you add a specified amount of sugar to the bottle and then cap it and wait a few days. But that's not how the commercial brewers do it.

[chocomouse]

Major concerns in the Northeast about low supplies of heating fuel, as we approach the winter heating season. But some suppliers are saying don't worry, we're prepared.

[Mike Nolan]

I worry that there will be another short-term shortage of natural gas, we're still paying for the shortage two years ago, when the gas company had to buy on the spot market at a much higher price.

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