Volume 6, Issue 9, September – 2021 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology

ISSN No:-2456-2165

Waste Management and Logistics of

Craft Beer Production
Attila Albert
Doctoral School on Safety and Security Sciences
Óbudai University
Budapest, Hungary

Abstract:- During small-scale brewing, the energy II. WASTE MANAGEMENT AND RECYCLING IN
demand and the amount of waste generated are very high. THE FOOD INDUSTRY
In order to reduce these quantities, the methods and
materials used in production and their logistics need to be One of the most important tasks of logistics is the
reviewed. Therefore, in my research, I look for the critical storage, transport and disposal of waste generated during
points where most waste is generated and try to find production. The professional, environmentally friendly
alternative methods that help reduce energy demand, collection of materials and waste used in production is the task
waste generated, and transportation costs. I will examine of recycling logistics. CLXXXV of 2012 on waste
what the Life Cycle Assessment and the Carbon Footprint management. The law is in line with the European Union's
are and look for a solution to reduce these metrics. I map environmental policy. This law covers the following activities:
out the possible recycling opportunities that can be used -collection and transport of waste,
in brewing processes, especially the recycling possibilities -waste management,
of wastewater, sludge and yeast. I am also looking at -monitoring of these activities,
alternative waste reduction options for packaging waste, -activity as a trader or intermediary,
as well as ways to reduce the logistical problems and costs -operation of waste management facilities and equipment,
associated with waste management. With this -Aftercare of waste facilities.
information, small-scale brewing will have the
opportunity to create a more sustainable, environmentally The Waste Act imposes the following conditions on
friendly production process. waste management activities:
-the activity must be carried out without endangering human
Keywords:- Craft Beer, Waste Management, Logistics, health and the environment
Sustainability, Recycling. -the activity does not pose a risk to the environmental
elements,
I. INTRODUCTION -do not cause a nuisance or smell to the public,
-does not adversely affect the landscape, protected natural and
Brewing is a high energy process. For the industry to be cultural values.
sustainable, renewable energy sources must be involved in
production. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a method that The concept of waste is most simply formulated as what
allows the environmental impact of a product during its life is not needed, what is unnecessary, what we put in the trash
cycle to be individualized and quantified. As neither small- [2].
scale and large-scale brewing can be described as
environmentally friendly, especially with regard to the The primary goal of the plants is to minimize the amount
resources used, such as water and energy, some sustainable of waste generated during production. The part of the material
practices need to be introduced into the brewing process in used that appears in the finished product is called useful or
order to be sustainable [1]. Carbon Footprint (CF) is an pure use, and its size is specified by the so-called net norm. In
indicator of the total amount of direct and indirect emissions some industries, such as the food industry, a certain amount of
of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases, raw material in the finished product is an essential condition
expressed in carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2eq). The LCA for the required quality of the product. In these sectors, the
method is often used to calculate this indicator. At present, raw material content of the finished product is usually set by
these indicators are very high in the industry, moreover, in standards. In such cases, the reduction of clean use degrades
terms of the amount produced, the waste and energy used in the quality of the finished product [3]. In the case of small
small-scale production are significantly higher in specific plants, it is even more important to minimize the waste
terms than in large-scale production. In order to reduce these generated, as the cost of waste management per product will
indicators, we need to review production processes and apply be higher for fewer finished products.
new methods that help reduce energy consumption and the
amount of waste generated.

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Volume 6, Issue 9, September – 2021 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology
ISSN No:-2456-2165
Not only is waste generated in the food industry during Designing local supply chains can save a lot of transportation
production, but a quarter, or even half, of the quantities costs. Breweries have the option of entering into contracts
produced become inedible even before it reaches the with their suppliers that oblige suppliers to take back the
consumer’s mouth. The food industry does not aim to reduce packaging materials in which the raw materials needed for
food waste generated by households, as these increase their production are delivered to the plants. This can significantly
revenues. Although there are campaigns for food waste reduce the waste production of a brewery.
reforms, producers cannot be forced to produce less waste [4].
Solution options: Brewing is divided into several successive operations:
- redistribution: mainly redistribution of remaining, surplus malting, grinding, mashing, copying, adding hops or hop
raw materials to those in need extract and boiling the whey, disposing of used hops and
- creation of animal feed precipitated protein, aerating and cooling the whey,
- anaerobic fermentation fermenting with yeast, removing yeast, conditioning
composting maturation) and packaging. The goal is to convert yeast-
- heat treatment and energy recovery [5]. derived sugars into simple sugars with the help of yeast,
which, when fermented, result in a low-alcohol, lightly
In addition, waste generated during production can be carbonated beverage. This production process leads to the
used more widely, which can even serve as a raw material in generation of large amounts of organic waste [7].
other industries:
1. reuse in the food industry: the resulting by-products can be The principle of prevention is paramount in waste
used to produce another new type of product management. By choosing the right technologies, processes
- flour: the pulverulent material produced during milling could and materials, many wastes can be significantly reduced.
be used as a food supplement by milling plants, as they are Another important task is the selective collection of recyclable
generally of high nutritional value but cannot be used in a or salable waste. The use of a compactor can also reduce
given production process. storage space and shipping costs. Alternatively, the possibility
- colorants: as a natural colorant, food waste can be recovered of energy recovery by incineration can be explored, which
much more valuable, as opposed to synthetic colorants should be preferred to landfill [8]. Amienyo et al. says twelve
- enzymes: enzymes can reduce the chemical load, making environmental impacts were studied in relation to beer
production more sustainable, eliminating toxic substances and packaging, taking into account 3 types of packaging methods,
reducing pollution which are as follows:
2. cosmetics industry: the demand for the use of natural -global warming potential (GWP)
materials has come to the fore in the production of cosmetic - abiotic depletion potential (ADP)
products, so food by-products can be used instead of artificial -acidification potential (AP)
ones - eutrophication potential (EP)
- antioxidant: a very important substance for the human body, - human toxicity potential (HTP)
so it can be easily replaced by recycling waste from the food - marine aquatic ecotoxicity potential (MAETP)
industry. It is especially needed by the skin, so it is often used -natwater aquatic ecotoxicity potential (FAETP)
in sunscreens and oils. - terrestrial ecotoxicity potential (TETP)
3. Pharmaceutical industry: Synthetic antimicrobials, which -zone depletion potential (ODP)
are used against microorganisms in the pharmaceutical - photochemical oxidant generation potential (POCP)
industry, are causing more and more respiratory diseases and energy demand
infections in human organisms. Thus, the pharmaceutical -water demand
industry is also open to using natural substances as raw The 3 types of packaging carriers tested:
materials for medicines. -steel box
- antibacterial and anti-cancer preparations: food by-products -glass
are in many cases a source of excellent nutrients and -aluminum box
phytochemical compounds for a healthy lifestyle.
antivirals: viral mutations have accelerated in recent years, Beer in steel cans has the least impact on five of the 12
leading researchers to move towards bioactive ingredients that impact categories considered: primary energy demand,
have high antiviral capacity, reduce the activity of infected depletion of abiotic resources, acidification, marine and
cells and inhibit their proliferation [6]. freshwater toxicity. Bottled beer is the worst solution for nine
impact categories, including global warming and primary
III. MATERIAL AND METHOD energy demand, but has the least potential for human toxicity.
Beer in aluminum cans is the best solution for ozone depletion
Critical points of waste generation, prevention and recycling and photochemical smog but has the greatest potential for
Waste generation from large-scale breweries is human and marine toxicity [9]. Nevertheless, Molina-Besch et
outstanding in the food sector, mainly due to wastewater. The al. draws attention to the fact that the indirect environmental
energy demand and waste generation of craft breweries is even effects of packaging are not sufficiently taken into account in
higher in specific terms than that of large-scale breweries. In current food LCA practice. A more systematic study of
the interests of sustainability, logistics supply chains, which in indirect environmental effects would be needed to establish a
many cases cross countries and continents, should be replaced more accurate LCA. In addition, further packaging research is
by local supply chains, thus increasing sustainability. needed to obtain the currently missing empirical data [10].

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Volume 6, Issue 9, September – 2021 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology
ISSN No:-2456-2165
Critical points of the brewing process in terms of waste treated with an outdoor photobioreactor to grow microalgae,
production: and excess sludge was treated with hydrothermal
carbonization. With this system, all organic carbon in
1. Mash, mud wastewater was reduced by 97%. This method has
Barley waste can be used as a carbon source during demonstrated a near-zero waste emission system capable of
fermentation for the cultivation of microbial biomass, for the producing high-quality wastewater, recovering nutrients and
production of microbial enzymes, sugars, proteins, organic carbon into microalgal biomass, and producing energy as
acids, antioxidants and food additives, or simply as an biogas and hydrocarbons [13].
adsorbent for the removal of organic matter from wastewater
and the immobilization of various substances [11]. Barley 4. packaging materials
waste is an excellent source of nutrients for ruminants. Most
Hungarian craft breweries consider this recycling option a (a) glass
priority. The waste generated is resold as animal feed. But By reducing glass breakage in the mining industry, the
there are other uses for it. In addition to being reused as food generation of waste can be significantly reduced. It is also
of animal origin, some of its ingredients may be useful as more environmentally and economically advantageous to use
precursors or carbon sources for food chemicals in microbial the largest possible packaging. Although multi-way glass is
fermentations: much more environmentally friendly, it is much more
(a) dietary and nutritional use expensive from a logistical point of view, but it would
(b) commercial and industrial use of microbial products drastically reduce the cost of packaging material. In cases
o bioethanol production where one-way packaging is unavoidable (eg for hygienic
o lactic acid production reasons) or proves to be more economical than multi-way
o production of xylitol packaging, it is advisable to choose packaging that is
o microbial enzyme production recyclable (eg paper or glass) or biodegradable (eg paper).
o protein hydrolyzate production [11] These usually reduce the cost of disposal and can sometimes
even generate revenue [8].
However, it is worth mentioning that a certain proportion
of the remaining beer can be recovered from the remaining b) alu box
mash with different filtration and centrifugation technologies, An excellent alternative to reducing glass production is
so there will be less loss. aluminum cans, which are showing an increasing trend when
packaging craft beers. The production of aluminum cans
Pyocyanin is a fluorescent phenazine pigment, bright requires more energy than that of glass, but their lower weight
blue in color, synthesized exclusively by approximately 95% allows transport to be optimized. The recycling / reuse of
of Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains. Malt pomace is an bottles should be encouraged by streamlining the transport of
excellent environmentally friendly alternative in the process of empty bottles to breweries [1].
producing pyocyanin in a synthetic medium [12].
c) plastic bottles
2. yeast If in some cases plastic-based one-way packaging is
Yeast is a very valuable feed due to its high protein, unavoidable, it is advisable to strive for uniform (same
vitamin and mineral content. It is also suitable for human material) packaging. If the resulting packaging plastic waste is
consumption, in which case the yeast must be dried. Yeast, made uniform (eg only polyethylene films), there is hope for
both in suspension and in dried form, is a valuable raw its recovery or sale [8].
material in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries [8].
Plastic packaging is the least environmentally friendly
3. sewage solution, so it is advisable to avoid this in all cases.
The high COD value of the used diatomaceous earth into
the wastewater must be avoided and due to the suspended d) KEG
solids load. Therefore, it is advisable to recycle diatomaceous Packaging in KEG barrels is one of the most
earth in all cases, which has many possibilities. Conservation, environmentally friendly solutions. The tanks are multi-way,
sterilization, soil improvement, composting, regeneration, so they can be used more than once or a significantly larger
building materials industry. amount of beer can be transported in one container. However,
this requires proper cleaning, which increases the amount of
The chemicals entering the wastewater, which are chemicals used. The adversity of recent years has made us
necessary for sterilization and cleaning, must be neutralized. realize that although KEG is environmentally friendly, there
Pomace and yeast do not enter the wastewater using the are times when the volume of beer sold in KEG barrels drops
appropriate technologies. It is important that the label waste to almost zero, as restaurant and restaurant closures caused by
does not end up in the wastewater, as this is harmful to the the corona virus almost zeroed out KEG sales worldwide.
environment as a suspended matter [8].
(e) alternative options
A zero waste treatment system close to food processing It is important that the storage device into which the beer
wastewater has been developed and studied. Wastewater was enters and travels to the consumer is always clean. This is
treated with an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR), especially important for recycled devices such as recyclable

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Volume 6, Issue 9, September – 2021 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology
ISSN No:-2456-2165
glass or KEG barrels. If not properly washed and cleaned, biorefinery [8]. It is important to note, however, that a
there is a risk of infection. Today, the consumption of tank biorefinery involves a huge investment cost, so it makes sense
beers is becoming more widespread, which means that beer is to bring together several smaller distilleries next to each other
taken directly from the factory to the pubs in huge tanks, and set up the plant together. Installing a biorefinery next to
unpasteurized. Its shelf life is thus greatly reduced, but its breweries would take huge logistical costs off the breweries,
enjoyment value is greatly increased due to the omission of creating much more environmentally friendly and sustainable
heat treatment. To prevent the storage tanks from becoming production, with, of course, greater consideration of
dirty and having to be disinfected weekly, the factories line the environmental impacts.
inside of the tanks with a sterile bag and fill the beer directly
into these bags, thus avoiding contact with metal surfaces. It IV. RESULTS & SUMMARY
can be disposed of after the bag has been emptied, which is
reassuring from a food safety point of view, but a concern In my research, I map out the critical points in the
from an environmental and sustainability point of view. process of artisanal, small-scale beer production from the
point of view of waste management and logistics. In terms of
Waste logistics, alternative, on-site use of waste from waste, there are countless recycling results that are many times
brewing: Algae, Biomass, Biorefinery more economical, environmentally friendly and sustainable
Algae immobilization remains an open field for different instead of the current useful methods. Of course, the principle
research in different fields. Immobilized algae technology has of prevention is the most important, but there are cases where
proven to be very effective in remediation, heavy metal this is not possible. In the case of the packaging of the finished
removal, and toxicity assessment. One of the most promising product, I examined the most sustainable solution, considering
areas of research is the use of this technology to reduce 12 aspects, projected on 3 different packaging materials, but
environmental pollution through the biosorption and each of them also has advantages and disadvantages.
biodegradation of many harmful compounds. Combinations of Alltogether, multi-way, high-capacity, high-fracture, but very
solar energy and algae immobilization technologies can be light glass would be the most environmentally friendly
successfully applied in industrial processes, including brewing packaging materials in the beer industry, but they don’t exist
[14]. yet. An alternative could be to use tank circuits in catering
units, but this is unsuitable for home use. In most cases, the
Brewery wastewater contains huge amounts of organic recyclable food by-products can be recycled. There are
compounds that can cause environmental pollution. The numerous solutions for wastewater treatment, a novelty is the
microalgae wastewater treatment method is an emerging, treatment with an anaerobic membrane bioreactor, which can
environmentally friendly biotechnological process. Microalgae reduce the amount of total organic carbon in the water by
thrive well in nutrient-rich wastewater by absorbing organic 97%. Based on the immobilization of algae, it is an open area,
nutrients and converting them into useful biomass. Harvested carrying it in countless ways. Biomass production and the
biomass can be used as animal feed, biofertilizer and as an establishment of a bioprocessing plant for breweries is a whole
alternative energy source for biodiesel production [15]. new field, but there are many potential rejectors in it. It can
significantly reduce logistics costs, but at a huge investment
There are three main aspects to the success of any cost. The task of the future is to examine the economy and
sustainable biofuel: technical feasibility; economic viability; sustainability of such a factory, considering the environmental
and sustainability of resources. Algae-based biofuels are effects.
technically feasible. In addition, the sustainability of resources
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