Marita Stannis chose the safe path and her passion for it is evident in all that she does because at the end of the day, everything comes back to safety.

 

By: Living a Stout Life

 

About Malteurop Malting Company (MMC)

We are committed to growing, sourcing, and delivering the highest quality malt products that elevate our customers’ craft. We are innovators, designers, scientists, farmers, brewers and artists. We want you to know us as a vital part of the community. 

 

Meet Marita Stannis

Marita Stannis is Malteurop Director of EHS (Environmental Health and Safety) and Environmental Sustainability for North America. But to understand what that title really means, we may just have to refer to her unofficial title of the “Safety Lady”, of which Marita embraces with enthusiasm.

 

Overseeing safety and sustainability in all four of Malteurop’s North American malting plants in Canada, the U.S., and Mexico, Marita does not take her job lightly. In fact, she rather enjoys it.

 

“I enjoy safety and sustainability and looking at how we can be better stewards to the earth around us, making sure we reduce our emissions, water, and carbon. But also focusing on the brewing and malting industry and the people that bring it all together.”

 

Since January of 2019, Marita has been the head of safety, but she recognizes that every employee plays a role when it comes to being safe.

 

“We’ve empowered our employees to stop if something is not safe. We’ve taught them that production is important, but safety is more important. Because if we can’t produce safely, there’s no point in producing.”

 

What is your educational background?

Graduating from college with a degree in occupational safety and health, Marita’s first significant position was working as a safety manager at a medical manufacturing company. After five years there, she transferred to a large mining equipment company. After eight years there, she received a call from MMC. 

 

Always looking to be better and do better, Marita was up for the challenge of transitioning her safety career in heavy equipment manufacturing to food manufacturing. So when Malteurop reached out, Marita answered.

 

How did you decide to build a career at a malting company?

But what we really wanted to know was if Marita had always dreamed of becoming a “Safety Lady”.

 

With a laugh, her response was, “Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be a ‘Safety Lady’. I didn’t even know a ‘Safety Lady’ existed when I went to college.” 

Marita initially wanted to be a teacher. We’ll let her tell you that story.

 

“I decided I wanted to be a teacher when I first went to college, so I got into it, and I didn’t find that it was my passion. I signed up for some classes and took an intro to safety class because it was going to be easy. I took the class clearly for all the right reasons,” she says sarcastically. “And I loved it. And I felt this passion and took a couple more [safety related] classes and that was it. This is what I wanted to do.”

 

What does your average day look like?

And that passion has not waned, even in her day to day duties at Malteurop.

 

Marita is quick to state that she is available first and foremost for whatever her safety managers at each of Malteurop’s four plants need from her.

 

In addition to that, Marita attends operations meetings, plant safety committee meetings, and best practices meetings. There are a lot of meetings and paperwork, but this ensures both herself and others that she is a part of the team and safety is a priority.

 

“Safety is our utmost priority, and we had been saying this from the beginning, ’If we can’t do something safely, it’s not a win.’”

 

When Marita isn’t working with people hands on or traveling to one of the plants, she’s updating safety manuals, working on CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility), analyzing safety metrics, and implementing sustainable practices.

 

What is Malteurop’s role in sustainability practices?

Malteurop is working to lower greenhouse gas emissions and reduce water usage. But sustainability is more than that. It’s about the community, too. One example involves educating the new growing group at the Mexico plant in sustainable farming practices, ensuring successful farming and continued safe practices.

 

“It’s on a people level. When we hear sustainability, we think environmental. But it’s more than that. It’s around diversity and inclusion, it’s around training and retention, education and leadership programs, and the community.”

 

Malteurop is initiating a strategy to establish themselves as not only a place dedicated to safety, but also sustainability. 

 

And for the brewer and distiller, MMC is stepping up, as well. Working with breweries and distilleries to meet their sustainability needs, being transparent with greenhouse gas emissions, water usage, labor practices, and more.

 

Safety and sustainability aren’t stagnant. They require real work, and as Marita says, “I’m a resource for the people doing the real work.” 

 

She goes on to say, “Everybody has a learning curve and new things are coming up all the time and we all have to learn together.”

 

Tell us more about safety at Malteurop.

Because learning and safety go hand in hand, and because safety is the key to sustainable practices, we wanted to know more about the importance of safety all throughout Malteurop.

 

“Safety is a day to day thing. It’s not a one and done thing. We’re lucky we have really great managers that can walk the walk and talk the talk. Before people are even hired, they are told that safety is the number one priority. It starts that first day. Safety is constant. We do safety training all the time. Every day, we talk safety. It can even be non-work related things, but the idea is to start off your day with safety so you’re already in that mindset.”

 

Malteurop employees have embodied a culture of being safe. From the office floor to the plant floor, employees are empowered and engaged in safety.

“Everything at the end of the day comes back to safety.”

 

To learn more about Malteurop’s culture of being safe, click here.

 

What are some of your career accomplishments?

We would say that having the entire Malteurop team on board with safety and sustainability practices are great accomplishments, but Marita’s far from done.

Many office employees recently took part in a CPR training class headed up at MMC’s corporate location. A class that she’s proud to say was well attended and eagerly accepted. 

 

She’s also proud to say that the Winnipeg plant recently celebrated one year without any lost time incidents. And the Great Falls plant even surpassed that; eleven years without a lost time injury and 18 months without any injuries at all.

 

“It’s been pretty remarkable to see the change, the work. I’m proud of that, but I didn’t do the work; the team did the work. Every person from the plant managers to the supervisors to the people on the production floor. At the end of the day, they are the ones that did the work. I’m so proud.”

 

Where do you see the future of malting heading?

Safety will always have a space in malting, but when it comes to the future of malting, it’s difficult to pinpoint that future. Marita does know, however, that Malteurop constantly strives to make their processes and efficiency the best. Innovation is going to be the key.

 

“It’s difficult to say what the future holds. I don’t foresee it stopping. I don’t foresee people stopping drinking beer anytime soon, but it will be interesting. Innovation and change has to happen.”

 

And Malteurop is at the forefront of that innovation.

 

What’s your favorite style of beer and why? 

While Marita does admit to being a white wine fan more than beer, she does like a well-made lager every once in a while. She also enjoys the tasting process and learning more about flavors in beverages, including bourbon.

 

“My husband is into bourbon and I’m trying to learn more about bourbon. And similar to beer, all of the bourbons can taste so different.” 

 

What defines you outside of work?

With two kids, Marita’s answer to who she is outside of work comes as no surprise.

 

“First and foremost, I’m a mom. I have two kids: a nine-year-old son and a 15-year-old daughter, who has Down syndrome. We’ve been an advocate for her since she was born, namely being on the board for Down Syndrome Association of Wisconsin for over 14 years volunteering and fundraising. My husband and I spend a lot of time doing things for others, but we get it back ten-fold.”

 

Marita also enjoys being active and being outside and trying new things. She’s all about checking out both Mother Nature and her local community.

Anything that keeps her active because, as she says, “I can’t sit still!”

 

Yet, it’s her love of cooking that brings her peace. “The kitchen is my place to think and process and figure things out. That’s my peace and my calm.”

 

Marita may not have become the classroom teacher that her young self envisioned when she first stepped into college. But she did become a teacher both in the sense that she educates and helps in all aspects of her life, personal and professional. 

 

Thank you, Marita. We’re glad you chose the safe path.

 

“I always wanted to be a helper, and I make sure my employees go home the same way they came in every day. And I’m not just helping one or two people, I’m helping a lot of people. I love it. This is my passion.”

 

Premium grains from field to flavor.

 

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About Malteurop Malting Company (MMC)

Malteurop Malting Company (MMC) is based in North America—specializing in growing and producing quality malts for the beer, whiskey, and food processing industries. With local farms and Malthouses spread across the United States, Canada, and Mexico, Malteurop’s commitment to excellence is fully ingrained into every batch it produces, ensuring businesses of any size can create the finest beverages and food products on the planet.

 

Visit www.malteuropmaltingco.com to learn how we can support your malting needs.

 

Contact us at customersuccess@malteurop.com or (844) 546-MALT (6258) for questions or to place your order.

 

Malting is our passion. Quality is our promise.