Serious opposition to hydraulic fracturing has appeared in Germany, where makers of beer have cited concerns with the drilling practice.

The Association of German Breweries says fracking’s potential impact on groundwater supplies could jeopardize the country’s 497-year-old legal tradition of producing pure beer. German beer is allowed to be made only from malt, hops, yeast and water.

“We are concerned that fracking endangers the brewing water that more than half of Germany’s breweries take from private wells,” Marc-Oliver Huhnholz, a spokesman for the group, told Bloomberg. “And that it threatens our absolutely pure beer.”

Many politicians are taking note of the fracking criticism. Chancellor Angela Merkel is backing legislation in her coalition that would outlaw fracking in some areas of the country.

Social Democrats, who are not part of Merkel’s government, want a temporary ban on the practice, while their Green party allies want it outlawed altogether.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

To Learn More:

German Beer Purity Threatened by Fracking Say Brewers (by Stefan Nicola, Bloomberg)

Purity Concerns: German Beer Brewers Foaming over Fracking (Speigel Online)

Obama Administration Saves Beer Drinkers from Monopoly Takeover (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)