2 Cape Breton craft breweries looking at expansion

Cape Breton's only craft breweries are both expanding to meet an unquenchable thirst for local beer, aiming to make their brewsmore available to people across Nova Scotia.

Big Spruce Brewing, whichopened just three-and-half years ago, has already maxed out its production capacity at its current brewery.

Supplying 45 locations, withmore on waitinglists, made expansion inevitable, said owner Jeremy White.

"Right now we just can't satisfy that demand, so something had to be done," hesaid.

With funding from the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, New Dawn Enterprisesand Business Development Bank ofCanada, Big Spruce isbuilding a second brewery across the road from itslocation on the Yankee Line in Nyanza, just outside Baddeck.

The 560 square-metrebuilding will allow the companyto produce itsmost popular beers ingreater quantity.

White saysconstruction will start in the next few weeks,with the goal of producing beer thereby November.

"It's going to benice to get to a point in our business where we don't have to be so worried about where we're going to get beer for orders in a given week," he said.

Closer to Sydney, thefolks at Breton Brewingare also hard at work.

Along with selling their product in growlers, they're now putting four of their beers in cans.

Co-owner Bryan MacDonaldcarefully works the canning system, while his partner Andrew Morrow keeps up with the brewing end of things.

"We're canning a couple of times a week right now," said MacDonald. "Basically we're going from zero stores to approximately 40 [Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation]stores,so the demand is quite high and we're trying to keep up with that."

Breton Brewing has sent out 20,000 cans so far.

MacDonald says he and his partner arepleased with their expansion and the public's response.

"We just launched [cans]on Mondayand already stores are running out of our beers, so it's a good sign," he said.

"I think people like our product and now it's more easily accessible for them."

Big Spruce is also planning to can beeronce itsnew facility is built.

The breweries have nine employees a piecea mix of full and part-time workers.