CO₂ Shortages Keep Coming Back. Here’s How to Need Less of It.

If your CO₂ supply has felt a little less predictable lately, you're not alone.

In August 2026, gasworld reported CO₂ supply disruptions in the southeastern United States, where quality issues at a major source, force majeure declarations and offline production plants have affected availability. Some breweries in the region have even experienced periodic production shutdowns as a result. The Brewers Association has also reported unreliable delivery schedules, supplier allocations and volatile pricing for beverage-grade CO₂ in the Southeast.

This doesn't mean every part of the country is experiencing a CO₂ shortage. In fact, supply has remained relatively stable in many areas. But it does highlight something beverage operators have dealt with before: CO₂ supply can become tight quickly when production, transportation or regional supply sources are disrupted.

And the broader U.S. market remains tight. gasworld's 2026 U.S. CO₂ outlook projects nameplate capacity declining from approximately 35.7 thousand tons per day in 2025 to 34.9 thousand tons per day by the end of 2026, while demand continues to grow at roughly 2% annually.

You can't control the CO₂ market.

But you can control how much CO₂ your operation needs.

For beverage operations looking to reduce their exposure to future supply disruptions, there are three good places to start: use less CO₂ where it isn't necessary, stop wasting the CO₂ you already have, and use nitrogen where the application calls for it.

1. Use Less CO₂ Where You Don't Need It

CO₂ in a beverage system isn't always being used to carbonate or dispense the beverage itself.

In many fountain beverage systems, CO₂ is also used to power bag-in-box (BIB) syrup pumps. That's a job that doesn't necessarily require CO₂. Properly treated compressed air can operate those pumps instead, leaving your CO₂ supply available for the applications that actually require it.

Milcarb's A2U Air Compressor System was designed specifically for this purpose. It supplies clean, dry compressed air for BIB pumps, allowing operators to remove that portion of their system from their CO₂ supply.

Depending on the operation and how much of its CO₂ consumption is associated with BIB pumps, converting them to compressed air can reduce overall CO₂ consumption by up to 40%.

During a normal supply period, that's an efficiency improvement.

During an allocation or delayed delivery, that reduction can mean something more important: the CO₂ you have lasts longer.

2. Stop Losing the CO₂ You Already Bought

Reducing consumption isn't just about changing equipment. It's also about making sure the gas you're purchasing actually reaches the beverage.

Small leaks can quietly consume a surprising amount of CO₂ over time. Loose fittings, damaged tubing, worn seals and improperly connected components may not cause an obvious system failure, but they can steadily drain a bulk tank or cylinder bank.

That's why leak inspection should be part of routine beverage system maintenance rather than something that happens only after CO₂ consumption suddenly increases.

Start with the basics:

• Periodically inspect tubing, fittings, regulators and connections.

• Pay particular attention to components that are regularly disconnected or serviced.

• Investigate unexplained increases in CO₂ usage.

• Repair known leaks instead of compensating for them by increasing pressure or simply ordering more gas.

  
  

A CO₂ shortage makes conservation more important, but eliminating leaks makes sense regardless of what the supply market is doing.

The cheapest pound of CO₂ is often the one you don't lose.

3. Generate Nitrogen On-Site Where It Makes Sense

CO₂ isn't the only gas used in beverage dispensing.

Many draft beer systems use a controlled blend of CO₂ and nitrogen. The correct blend depends on the beverage, carbonation level, system design and required dispensing pressure. Nitrogen shouldn't simply replace CO₂ arbitrarily — the gas mixture needs to be appropriate for the application.

But where nitrogen is already part of the required blend, there's another opportunity to reduce dependence on delivered gas: generate the nitrogen on-site.

Milcarb's N2U Nitrogen Generators produce nitrogen at the point of use rather than relying on delivered nitrogen cylinders. When paired with a B2U Gas Blender, the generated nitrogen can be combined with CO₂ at a predetermined blend for the beverage system.

The result isn't the elimination of CO₂. Carbonated beverages still need CO₂.

What it does accomplish is equally important: a portion of the beverage system's gas demand can be supplied on-site instead of arriving on a delivery truck.

For an operator concerned about gas availability, that's one less piece of the supply chain to depend on.

Why Does CO₂ Supply Get Tight?

Part of the challenge is where commercial CO₂ comes from.

Much of the CO₂ used by the beverage industry isn't produced solely for beverage use. It is recovered from other industrial processes. In the United States, ethanol fermentation is a common source, while ammonia, hydrogen and naturally occurring CO₂ sources also contribute to the merchant market.

That creates an unusual supply chain: the beverage industry depends on CO₂ that is often produced because another industry is operating.

Plant maintenance, production economics, source quality problems, transportation constraints and regional concentration can therefore affect the amount of beverage-grade CO₂ available even when beverage demand hasn't changed. The Brewers Association currently identifies many of those same factors as ongoing risks to supply reliability.

The situation in the Southeast during the summer of 2026 is a good example. A disruption at a major regional source contributed to force majeure declarations and supply problems for beverage users.

It's also why the answer isn't simply to assume another supplier will always have CO₂ available.

Build a More Efficient Beverage Gas System

No equipment can guarantee that your CO₂ supplier won't experience a shortage.

What you can do is make your operation less vulnerable when one happens.

Use compressed air for BIB pumps where appropriate. Find and repair leaks. Generate nitrogen on-site when nitrogen is part of your beverage gas requirements. And make sure the CO₂ you purchase is being used for the jobs that actually require CO₂.

Those changes make sense when CO₂ is plentiful.

They make even more sense when it isn't.

Miller Carbonic has been helping customers design, install and service beverage gas systems since 1963. If you'd like help looking at where your operation is using CO₂ — and where it may not need to — contact Milcarb at 888-562-0299.