German brewers concerned about water purity plead case to Merkel The extraction of oil and gas by means of hydraulic fracturing - aka "fracking" - has ignited a firestorm of controvery over its possible risks, but a new report hands a powerful weapon to its opponents: fracking may harm German beer.

The Telegraph reports that the German brewers' association Brauer-Bund has warned Chancellor Angela Merkel that fracking may foul the water used in German beer, and run afoul of the purity law, the Reinheitsgebot, which requires that German beer be composed of only malt, hops, yeast, and water.

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