When COVID-19 began to spread in the U.S., Dr. Bill Schroer was in a unique position to help.
The orthopedic surgeon at SSM Health DePaul Hospital-St. Louis saw the growing need for hand sanitizer and decided to put his side business to use. Schroer is a co-owner of St. Louis Distillery, which has been turning out small batches of artisanal vodka and rye whiskey since 2012.
One byproduct of distilling is methanol, which some distillers are packaging for disinfectant. But the Missouri operation’s low volume didn’t generate much. However, the distillery’s license allows it to buy large quantities of high-proof ethanol, called for in the World Health Organization’s hand sanitizer formula.
Schroer said he and his healthcare colleagues saw “the pandemic firsthand and we knew this was an opportunity to help our community in this historical time of need.”
It took about two days for Schroer and another co-owner, Steve Herberholt, to design and assemble the mixing, pumping and bottling process. For each batch, mixing the three main ingredients—hydrogen peroxide, glycerin and ethanol—takes about a half-hour.
With help from some DePaul colleagues, friends and family, the distillery turned out its first batch of 70% ethanol hand sanitizer on April 3. By last week the crew had mixed up nearly 1,000 gallons. “They just finished up their last batch. It’s back to vodka and whiskey for them at the distillery now,” a SSM Health spokesperson said.
“It is increasingly difficult to obtain some of the raw ingredients” for sanitizer, Schroer said.
The sanitizers were distributed to skilled-nursing facilities, first responders and air traffic controllers at St. Louis Lambert International Airport.
