Wichita brewery that made hand sanitizer during pandemic now can sell to the public
If you’re still having trouble getting your hands on hand sanitizer, a Wichita brewery can now help.
Wichita Brewing Company, which at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic was licensed to start producing hand sanitizer in its brewery tanks for law enforcement and medical offices, is now allowed to sell the stuff to the public.
People who want 20 half-gallon jugs or fewer can stop into either Wichita Brewing Company brew pub — at 535 N. Woodlawn or 8815 W. 13th St. — and buy some.
A jug is $15 for regular people or $8 for nonprofits and government agencies. The brewery also is still selling jugs in larger quantities to businesses and organizations that need it, but for a large order, people should contact brewery owner Jeremy Horn at jhorn@wichitabrew.com.
Horn said that since he received the license to brew sanitizer back in late March, the brewery has made more than 10,000 gallons at its big production facility in south Wichita. It has been following a World Health Organization-provided recipe that uses denatured ethanol, glycerin, distilled water and hydrogen peroxide.
He’s provided the sanitizer to countless doctors and dentists offices, as well as to police departments all over the area. So far, his three biggest clients have been the Sedgwick County Sherrif’s Office, the Robert Dole VA Medical Center and USD 259.
For a while, so many orders were coming in, the brewery couldn’t keep up, Horn said. But the staff has been “cranking it out” for the last week and a half and are finally ready to share with the public.
The half-gallon bottles can be used to refill smaller pumps at home, he said.
Though the brewery is still full steam on beer production, it’ll likely continue making hand sanitizer as long as there’s a need, Horn said. Being able to do something productive during the pandemic has helped keep the staff sane — and has kept many WBC staffers employed, Horn said.
“Now that we’re fully licensed, we’ll do it as long as there’s a pandemic-related demand,” he said.
This story was originally published May 29, 2020 at 11:31 AM.
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