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Ohio Brewers Establish OSHA Alliance

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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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The Brewers Association (BA), the Master Brewers Association of the Americas (MBAA) District Midwest, and the Ohio Craft Brewers Association have established an alliance with the Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, and Toledo Area Offices of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the U.S. Department of Labor, and the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation. The alliance will foster a collaborative relationship to provide the craft brewing industry in Ohio with information, guidance, and access to training resources that will help protect the health and safety of their workers.

“This program will reduce and prevent exposure to hazards during brewing, fermenting, packaging, and delivery of craft beer,” said Larry Horwitz, founder of Four String Brewing Co., BA Board of Directors member and MBAA District Midwest representative. “The alliance advances one of the craft brewing industry’s core values: prioritizing safety and the climate to support it.”

“Our breweries deal with scalding liquids, caustic chemicals, contained spaces, heavy equipment and machinery, and so many more potential safety issues,” said Mary MacDonald, Ohio Craft Brewers Association Executive Director. “This alliance will help develop and deliver industry-specific education and training, offer resources to help our breweries develop stronger safety protocols, and increase the climate of safety awareness in Ohio’s craft brewing community.”

Alliances have proved to be valuable tools for both OSHA and alliance participants. The members of this alliance will work together to achieve the following trainings and objectives:

  • Develop and deliver effective training and education programs
  • Promote the shared free access to existing resources, such as the BA Online Brewery Safety Training
  • Share information among OSHA personnel and safety and health professionals regarding industry best practices
  • Provide free safety and health consulting using the OSHA On-Site Consultation programs (available in all fifty states)

The agreement establishing the alliance was signed on October 1, 2018 and will remain in force for two years.

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