“Renewable energy is one of the integral components to Alaska’s future. The new steam boiler at ABC is a great example of a forward-thinking approach to harnessing a new fuel source,” Alaska Rural Development State Director Jim Nordlund said in a statement on the U.S. Department of Agriculture website. “We’re happy to have played a part in this company’s innovation.”

Most breweries sell their spent grains to local farms for a profit. But because of the Alaskan brewery’s remote location, drying and shipping the grain was proving to be both expensive and wasteful.