By KTUU News Staff Channel 2 News KTUU

9:14 p.m. AKST, January 15, 2013
ANCHORAGE, Alaska—

The Alaskan Brewing Company announced Tuesday that left over beer by-product is being used as a fuel source.

The Juneau brewer uses wet grain, known as "spent grain" left over from the brewing process, as the sole fuel source for its steam boiler.

The company claims it’s the first brewery in the world to use the by-product as a fuel source.

A company representative says it reduces the company's fuel oil consumption in brewhouse operations by 60 to 70 percent.

The brewery says over the next 10 years it expects to save nearly 1 point 5 million gallons of oil by using the spent grain as a fuel source.

“Reducing our energy use makes good business sense, and good sense for this beautiful place where we live and play,” Alaskan Brewing co-founder Geoff Larson said.