In celebration of St. Patrick’s Day this week, the National Biodiesel Board (NBB) reminded us all that breweries throughout the U.S. and Canada have robust sustainability initiatives that include using biodiesel.

According to NBB, one example is a company whose flagship Pale Ale brew even has a green label: Sierra Nevada. Ranked as the second largest U.S. craft brewing company by the Brewers Association, Sierra Nevada has used a blend of up to 20 percent biodiesel (B20) for the last six years. Biodiesel blends fuel 15 long-haul and local delivery trucks for the Chico, Calif. company.

“At the brewery we’re always striving to essentially close the loop, and biodiesel helps us turn what could be a waste product into something useful,” said Ryan Arnold, Sierra Nevada communications manager in a NBB news release. “The trucks perform well. With up to B20, we don’t see much change in mileage.”

The company grows eight acres of hops and has an onsite garden at its restaurant in Chico, where it also fuels tractors with biodiesel. Other suitability initiatives include diverting about 99.8 percent of its solid waste from the landfill and housing one of the largest privately owned solar arrays in the country.

“The greening movement spreading through the brewing industry for years has a positive impact on other industries that follow their lead,” said Don Scott, the National Biodiesel Board’s director of sustainability. “It’s great to see biodiesel playing a key role in their strategies. As America’s first advanced biofuel, with a greenhouse gas reduction of up to 86 percent, biodiesel is the best choice a fleet can make to reduce its carbon footprint.”

To read more about “green” breweries, visit the NBB website.