NASA technology initially designed for Mars exploration is now helping breweries on Earth address carbon dioxide (CO2) shortages. CO2 is crucial in beer production for creating bubbles, preserving the drink’s freshness, and filling bottles or barrels. Shortages can disrupt production, as seen in 2021 when the Maine Beer Company faced a potential crisis. Dave Love, sustainability development manager at the Maine Beer Company, said that without CO2, the brewery risked losing beer freshness and would have been unable to bottle, barrel, or centrifuge its products. Beer fermentation naturally produces CO2, but many small breweries release this gas into the air and then buy it for the rest of the production. Large companies have long recovered CO2 through large-scale installations, but small breweries lacked an accessible solution. In the late 1990s, Pioneer Astronautics received contracts from NASA's Johnson Space Center. Robert Zubrin, engineer and founder of Pioneer Astronautics, worked with his team on machines capable of recovering CO2 from the Martian atmosphere and combining it with hydrogen to produce water and methane. This was intended to provide resources directly on Mars. In 2008, Zubrin founded Pioneer Energy and adapted this technology for Earth. Engineers realized the same principles could be used to recover CO2 from breweries, purify it, and store it. The Craft Brewery Recovery System entered production in 2015. In 2016, Amy George founded Earthly Labs to develop small-scale CO2 recovery. Earthly Labs was granted a license on this technology and developed CiCi, a compact installation for small breweries. In 2022, the Maine Beer Company installed this equipment, allowing the brewery to recover part of its CO2 and avoid shortages. Dave Love estimates that a single batch of beer without CO2 could result in more than $100,000 in lost revenue. According to Earthly Labs, the recovered CO2 approaches 100% purity, meeting the minimum requirement of 99.5% for beer. CO2 shortages have affected Europe as well. In 2022, Air Liquide explained that the shutdown of several ammonia production facilities reduced its CO2 supplies in Europe. Chemical groups then reduced their activity due to a surge in gas prices. In Poland, Carlsberg warned that a shortage could force its three breweries to reduce or stop production. In France, Brasseurs de France lists about 2,500 breweries, 96% of which are small and medium-sized enterprises. Food CO2 often depends on the activity of other industries such as ammonia producers, and a decrease in their production can weaken breweries. Earthly Labs is not only targeting beer, as the technology is also used in viticultural areas, distilleries, energy installations, and projects around helium. Amy George estimates that more than 100 customers use this equipment in several regions of the world. In July 2026, Baker Hughes finalized the purchase of Chart Industries for $13.6 billion, and Earthly Labs was part of Chart Industries. While NASA did not design the technology to save beer, it is now being used to protect breweries against shortages on Earth, reduce their purchases, and avoid the loss of entire batches.