{"id":72862,"date":"2023-11-26T13:11:55","date_gmt":"2023-11-26T20:11:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/?p=72862"},"modified":"2023-11-26T13:12:38","modified_gmt":"2023-11-26T20:12:38","slug":"hopping-forward-society-aims-to-diversify-calgary-craft-beer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/2023\/11\/26\/hopping-forward-society-aims-to-diversify-calgary-craft-beer\/","title":{"rendered":"Hopping Forward: Society aims to diversify Calgary craft beer scene"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Brewing local:<\/strong> Brandon Hart poses near repurposed barrels at The Establishment Brewery in Calgary on Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2023. Brandon is a co-founder of The Establishment. (Photo by Nathan Iles\/The Press)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

T<\/span>he Calgary craft beer scene has exploded over the last decade.<\/p>\n

Since Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis lowered the production-capacity requirement of Alberta breweries<\/a>, more than 40 breweries<\/a> have opened tap rooms across the city, cementing beer as a major industry. As the craft beer culture has grown, so too has the conversation around diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s where The Hop Forward Society steps in. This local, volunteer-driven organization aims to eliminate barriers and create opportunities for marginalized groups within the industry. Through collaborations with local breweries such as The Establishment, Hop Forward is making the Calgary craft beer scene a diverse place.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe started asking businesses, \u2018What are your actions doing for the community, aside from throwing up a quick Instagram post?\u2019\u201d said Erin McQuitty, co-founder of The Hop Forward Society.<\/p>\n

The Hop Forward Society<\/a> was founded in 2020 by McQuitty and Sharon Ruyter following the murder of George Floyd, and the Blackout Tuesday<\/a> social media movement that followed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe decided that creating a more diverse industry would require breaking down barriers,\u201d said McQuitty. \u201cWe felt that one of those barriers is access to the industry, or not having the financial means to get your foot in the door.\u201d<\/p>\n

Grants are offered through Hop Forward for people who are Black, Indigenous, racialized, LGTBQ2S+, and\/or living with disabilities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe decided not to do scholarships so that it [the financial support] did not have to be tied to an educational institution,\u201d said McQuitty. \u201cNot everyone has the means to go to school, and not everyone needs to.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two grants of $1,000 are awarded annually, with micro-grants of $500 offered on an ongoing basis. Funding for the grants is entirely provided by a community of sponsors Hop Forward has crafted within Alberta\u2019s beer industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey benefit from being a part of a community that is working towards the same change in our industry,” said McQuitty.<\/p>\n

The membership includes 14 different businesses, ranging from Canada Malting to Born Brewing,<\/a> a brewery McQuitty co-founded with her partner, Wade Brown. Born Brewing was awarded Community Builder of the Year at the 2023 Alberta Beer Awards.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe offer events and educational sessions for our members and their staff,\u201d McQuitty said. \u201cWe also host events in their spaces.\u201d<\/p>\n

One such event is a screening of the documentary One Pint at a Time, which will be held at The Establishment Brewing Company<\/a> in early 2024.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were at the Canadian Brewing Awards this year in Halifax, and One Pint at a Time was their keynote event presentation at the end of the conference,\u201d recounts Brandon Hart, co-founder of The Establishment.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe thought that we should show this so that people here (in Calgary) can see it, with the right mindset and focus. It made a lot of sense to do this with Hop Forward so that very quickly became a conversation for us to put on this event.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since premiering in 2021, One Pint at a Time has received more than 100 official selections for international film festivals and 50 best-of nominations across said festivals. Directed by Aaron Hos\u00e9, the film explores the Egyptian and African roots of beer brewing and highlights the discriminatory hurdles faced by modern black brewers.<\/p>\n

On the film’s website<\/a>, Hos\u00e9 is quoted saying, \u201cThe more aware I became of how \u2018white\u2019 craft beer was, the more uncomfortable I felt. If craft breweries were presenting themselves as \u2018A place to build community\u2019 and \u2018A safe space for all,\u2019 then why isn\u2019t everyone represented here?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hart agrees with this sentiment.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe representation in the beer industry is pretty homogenous, and I think that\u2019s true here (in Calgary),\u201d he said. \u201cThe important thing about this documentary is to be able to present other people’s stories and experiences. I don\u2019t think that is represented well in the industry at this time.\u201d<\/p>\n

On top of hosting events such as the screening, in October, The Establishment became the first brewery in the province to be recognized as a member of the Alberta Living Wage Network<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a difference between minimum wage and what it actually takes to live and function,\u201d states Hart. \u201cIt\u2019s small steps toward creating more discussion and recognition around these things.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another motivation, adds McQuitty, involves economics.<\/p>\n

“It\u2019s the right thing to do, and that\u2019s why we should do it,” she said. “But it\u2019s also a good business decision to make these changes to your policies.”<\/p>\n

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Hopping forward:<\/strong> Erin McQuitty strikes a pose outside of Born Brewing in Calgary on Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2023. Erin is a co-founder of Born and a founder of The Hop Forward Society. (Photo by Nathan Iles\/The Press)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Hop Forward Society is partnering with local breweries like The Establishment to make Calgary’s craft beer scene a more diverse, fair place. [ READ MORE ]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":870,"featured_media":72865,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_ef_editorial_meta_text_assignment-slug":"S2 Hopping Forward NI","footnotes":""},"categories":[1432,3,1431,16],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-72862","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business-jobs","8":"category-city","9":"category-food-and-nutrition","10":"category-ramsay"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72862","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/870"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=72862"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72862\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":73164,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72862\/revisions\/73164"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/72865"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=72862"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=72862"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=72862"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}