The future is bright, the future is green beer

In the aftermath of the UN’s COP 26 in Glasgow there was another environmental conference which saw the meeting of business leaders and experts from acrossthe brewing industry.

It was hosted by Roderick White ofNottingham University School of Brewingand Tim O’Rourke of Brilliant Beer, inassociation with the Institute of Brewingand Distilling IBD and the Society ofIndependent Brewers SIBA. Attendees

included everyone from hop farmers to representatives from the British Beer and Pub Association BBPA. They gathered not for a beer festival or posh luncheon but to discuss, debate and focus on how together they can

work towards achieving net zero carbon emissions for beer. The industry needs a 90% reduction to attain this; reducing CO2 from 500g to 50g per litre. After a rapid introduction we were straight to work with the first panel which

included CO2 calculations business Net Zero Now’s founder Simon Heppner, Greg Pilley of Stroud Brewery, Steve Livens, Policy manager for the BBPA, Roderick White of Nottingham University and Cask Marques CEO Paul Nunny.

The first panel looked at an overview of work already started on CO2 calculators, brewery and malting environmental practices, the BBPA sited its web based resource, ‘Brewing Green’ which highlights many projects already established in the industry and is a great source of inspiration and we looked at some of the facts and figures the most dramatic listed below:

Beer Emissions by sector of the industry Growing & processing raw materials 25% Brewing processes 10% Packaging 35% Distribution 10% Retail and home cooling 15% Management of Waste 5%

Audience participation through interjections, questions and idea sharing was encouraged and it was immediately clear that this was going to be a very interesting and progressive day. We were also enlightened on how CO2 calculations are based on three stages and do not need to be all calculated straight away.

Phase 1 - Measuring direct emissions eg. CO2 from burning fuels, CO2 from fermentation, gas release from gas bottles for carbonation. u Phase 2 - Requires the input of data from electric and water bills to calculate CO2 emissions from consumption utilities. u Phase 3 - Detailed assessment of purchases, services and customers carbon contributions.

The likely prospect of Carbon taxation in the not so distant future was noted and there was a consensus for there to be guidance on Green claims. The second panel focused on raw materials and included The Maltsters Association CEO Dr Julian South, Dr Nigel Davies Director of Technical and Sustainability at Munton’s Plc, Warminster Malting’s owner Robin Appel, John Sheard Farm’s Manager Russell McKenzie, Will Kirby Hop Farmer and Stephanie Brindley from Murphy and Son.

In the room there were also representatives from other businesses such as Charles Faram. Various arguments were made for and against organic products and it was agreed by many that whilst CO2 emissions are not always reduced by choosing organic, and that agriculture could not meet demand whilst we need so much crops for cattle feed.

However the point was made that organic most definitely has a place in preserving biodiversity and should still be encouraged. Muntons have made big changes to their facilities using their own renewable energy and water treatment to make their Malt 100% sustainable and with a target of 45% less emissions than in 2010 by 2025.

It was noted that the transportation of Barley is still often the greatest source of emissions although distance is not always the issue when shipping freight is compared to road transport. The economies of scale were also weighed against the use of a local maltings and a case by case study would be required.

Barley farming is also evolving its practices and Russell shared with us his experiences of crop rotation to successfully reduce green house emissions. Murphy’s explained many of their products that can help brewers reduce their carbon foot print in the brewery including foam inhibitors (preventing losses during processing and retaining foam properties for the final serve), brewers’ enzymes (reducing need for malted barley) and yeast aids (reducing fermentation time and thus cooling requirements).

The third panel included Steve Wilkinson, a distinguished brewer representing the IBD , Will Calvert the CEO Windsor and Eton Brewery, as well as Net Zero Now representative Johnny McCreesh, Will Todd CEO of Carbon Architecture and myself, Jennifer Tingay CEO Southbourne Brewing Limited.

This panel saw my favourite fact being shared which was that cows that consume brewers’ grains as a part of their diet produce 14% less Methane! I shared my principles of the 10 R’s being a simple tool for obtaining fast often low cost results and to be able to plan ahead when developing a new site. The brewing processes account for 10% of total beer CO2 emissions and includes CO2 release from fermentation.

Currently carbon capture technologies in the UK are only able to collect at volumes equal or greater than 25kg/hr making this technology limited to large breweries, however collective pressure from the micro brewing industry to develop micro technology could be worth progressing. It was noted that the capture must exceed the CO 2 from manufacture and delivery of plant to operate and that it might be necessary to form localised collectives to make this possible.

I spoke on reducing emissions by examining current practices to observe and implement simple, low cost and effective improvements, such as using the hot water from the preheat of the Mash Tun to clean the fermenting vessel, saving water and heat.

Also removing hoses from sites to prevent wastage and using heat captured from the Wort Kettle condenser to heat water for cask washing. Green house gas emissions from cooling plant refrigerant leaks were cited as an area often not considered and brewers were encouraged to use ammonia in bigger breweries and investigate alternatives.

The final panel was made up of representatives from the packaging industry, Ashley Parr IBD Midland section and representative from Carlsberg Marston’s Brewing Company, Ed Robinson Wells & Co’s Planet and Community Impact Lead, Robert Fall Chief Executive of Metal Packagers Association, Oliver Browne-Wilkinson of Staple Barn Ltd and Dr Michael Joyes, the Program Manager at Petainer Hybrid Kegs.

This panel discussed possible methods to reduce CO2 emissions which are currently 35% of the make-up of total beer CO2 footprint. Conversation started with the notorious plastic keg, how its

low bulk packaging weight is ideal for long distance, one way transportation but it is currently unrecyclable. Michael explained Petainer Hybrid Kegs research into making a fully dismantleable plastic kegs and therefore providing a recyclable option for the future. Consensus agreed that large pack keg and more so cask (not requiring gas for dispense or charging) were best for the environment being reusable.

However demand for small pack is growing and that finding the best option is important. Harvey’s brewery were applauded for still operating returnable glass bottles, but for beer not sold locally can is definitely “king” with 80% of all metal that has ever been mined still being available for use today. Can recycling turn around times are 60days and that cans in the UK are made from 50% recycled material.

We were informed that nearly all of the Planet’s Aluminium extraction and processing facilities are situated next to

Hydro-electric facilities saving emissions. We were also told that the modern can wall is only a hair’s width thickness. It is also worth noting that the scrap price of aluminium is £1000 per tonne, making recycling of cans a potentially profitable enterprise.

The use of stainless caps on the otherwise recyclable bottles was discussed and the ease of recycling them if they could be collected; it was suggested that a returns system across the nations pubs would be simple to initiate and would be more efficient than doorstep collection.

Last minute ideas included universal A6 guest pumpclips with landlords just changing the stickers but time ran out with plenty of ideas still to be shared.

Future meetings planned for 2022 aim to include other aspects of the industry such as distribution and equipment, continuing the task now started.

What is important now is that this discussion is continued with breweries and their suppliers and customers sharing ideas and influencing decisions.

This meeting was attended by many experienced and professional business people sharing the same passion for their respective industries, and all with the desire to make changes to their businesses in order to reduce the impact of beer on the environment.

Motivation is mixed, be it keeping ahead of carbon taxation or a desire to do good; both will drive the changes needed in the industry. Beer has been at the front of technological progress probably since it was first brewer 13000 years ago and it is therefore no surprise that the Brewing and Associated Industries are now tackling CO2 emissions head on.

Bringing QualityControl ToYour Brewery

Guarantee the consistency and quality of your beer using QCL’s range of analysers. We can help you with:

• Beer Chemistry

• Rapid Microbiology

• ABV and Density

• Hygiene Swabs (ATP)

www.qclbrewing.com 01342 820820