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Tennessee Sustainable Spirits
Tennessee is home to world class whiskey, wine, beer, and other fine spirits. The craft spirit producer’s connection to people, land, and resources is a relationship in which sustainability plays a vital role.
Tennessee Sustainable Spirits (“Sustainable Spirits”) is a voluntary recognition and technical assistance program administered by TDEC’s Office of Sustainable Practices (OSP) which seeks to reduce operational costs and environmental impacts for wineries and wine growers, breweries, and distilleries as well as serve as a gateway to sustainability education through popular brands. This voluntary program helps wineries and wine growers, breweries, and distilleries improve their operational sustainability by promoting best practices, providing technical assistance, and developing relationships. To learn more about this program and find a Sustainable Spirits member near you, check out our interactive map. In April, the TNSS program is partnering with Get Food Smart TN by hosting Food Waste Awareness Week events.
Food Waste Awareness Week is April 10-16. The goal of the event is to highlight issues associated with food waste and to inspire everyone to do their part to help reduce food waste, and increase food recovery and diversion in Tennessee.
On Saturday April 15th, breweries throughout the state will participate in the Bread to Tap initiative. Bread to Tap is a unique food recovery effort in which breweries partner with local bakeries and turn bread that would have been discarded into beer. This unique beer will be offered at each participating brewery on April 15th. In addition to the Bread to Tap beer, a TDEC representative will be at participating breweries hosting educational events on food waste and talking about this one-of-a-kind beer. Please visit our Food Waste Awareness Week website for more information on these events.
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Food Waste Awareness Week is almost here!
Join us for Tennessee's 2nd annual Food Waste Awareness Week which will take place virtually and in person April 10-16th, 2023! This will be a week full of education and outreach on food waste, food insecurity, donating food, and composting. We are partnering with the UT Ag Extension Agency and UT Institute of Agriculture to host a Statewide Food Drive April 3-21 as part of FWAW. You can get involved by finding a location near you to donate food items to help those who are food insecure in your community. To round out the week, you will have the opportunity to attend 1 of 5 events across the state at local breweries. You can find additional information about the week and the many opportunities to be a Food Hero on our website at the link below.
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Upcoming Webinar!Protecting Tennessee’s Natural ResourcesTennGreen Land ConservancyWednesday, April 12, 2023
For twenty-five years, TennGreen Land Conservancy has been a champion for protecting Tennessee’s rich landscapes so that people and nature can thrive. Alice Hudson Pell, TennGreen’s Executive Director, and Christie Henderson, TennGreen’s Deputy Director, will host a presentation on the benefits of land conservation, conservation strategies, and ways that industry leaders can engage in conservation through partnerships and engagement.
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On March 18th, Tennessee State Parks will host their Annual Spring Hike event. To welcome the season change, state park staff throughout the state will lead guided hikes that will include breath taking views, educational opportunities, and wildlife sightings. Each hike will vary in terrain, difficulty, and length so be prepared! If you would like to learn more about scheduled hikes and other hiking opportunities, please visit the Tennessee State Parks website.
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Small Business Environmental Assistance Program
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TDEC’s Small Business Environmental Assistance Program (SBEAP) 2022 annual stats are available for review! In 2022, SBEAP staff provided 305 individual assistances to 112 different types of industries. Additionally, the SBEAP website was visited over 20,000 times! SBEAP staff reached over 7,000 people through Facebook and Twitter, over 2,000 people at 13 different outreach events, and over 2,500 people learned valuable information through SBEAP’s e-newsletter. You can view the full annual report for more information.
Just like we helped 305 people last year, we can help you too! Contact us at 800-734-3619 or bgSBEAP@tn.gov. Also, you can sign up for our newsletter, TN Small Biz Buzz, and follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay updated on reporting deadlines, training opportunities, webinars, compliance tips, and more!
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Do you have some greens that are destined for the trash? Think again! Check out these 6 ways to use your wilted greens in a new way.
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Deadline: April 15, 2023
Conferences/Workshops/Training Opportunities
March 4, 2023 || 9am-3pm
Stay tuned as we receive updates about upcoming conferences.
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