A local brewery’s efforts to reduce environmental impact

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — President Trump has recently signed an executive order ending the federal mandate on the use of paper straws, but one local brewery is already ahead of the curve, embracing more sustainable practices—and they have no plans to turn back.

At Mad Mole Brewing, sustainability is at the forefront of their operations. Dano Ferons, the brewery’s Operations Manager, explained what prompted their shift toward environmentally-friendly practices. As a brewery, they produce significant amounts of waste, including cardboard, chemicals, and plastic, all of which can have harmful environmental impacts if not managed properly.

“The first thing we started with was spent hops—hops we used in the tanks that were just going down the drain. So, we found a local gardening club that would come and take it for compost,” said Ferons.

This simple, yet impactful, step in 2020 opened the door for Mad Mole to start an internship program with the University of North Carolina Wilmington’s Environmental Science Program in 2022. This collaboration led to the development of a Pak-Tec collection system, which focuses on reusing plastic holders—those four-pack and six-pack rings commonly used to package beer.

“For Mad Mole, we try to reuse them. If you bring them by the brewery, we’ll take them from you, wash them, and sort through them to make sure they’re really clean…” Ferons added.

In addition to these efforts, Mad Mole Brewing partners with Cape Fear River Watch for its Saturday cleanups, further demonstrating its commitment to the environment.

Rob Clark, Water Quality Programs Manager at Cape Fear River Watch, believes in being proactive about addressing environmental issues. He hopes that state legislation will continue to move toward eliminating single-use plastics, particularly after the release of North Carolina’s 2023-2024 litter report.

“We can pursue our own single-use plastic policies, and we advocate and hope for that across the state. In that report, we have quite a few recommendations about how the state needs and can step in to reduce single-use plastic,” said Clark.