End-to-end processing
Our technologies span raw materials reception, through purification, processing and heat treatment, to drying, filling and packaging. We think the combination of GEA engineering, industry and process expertise gives us a potentially unmatched insight into every aspect of processing and production, in multiple sectors. We’ve worked closely with customers in industries as diverse as food and pharma, agbio and biofuels, biobased chemicals, pharma, and biotech.
GEA technologies for commercially viable co-products manufacture
As regulations on waste, emissions, resource use and recycling are likely to tighten, it makes sense for manufacturers to focus on reducing their environmental footprint. It’s our aim here at GEA to develop and supply the equipment, digital solutions and expertise that can let our customers innovate sustainably as they turn brewery waste into valuable co-products, and support the global vision of enabling a truly circular economy. And while there are a number of definitions of what a circular economy means, the Ellen Macarthur Foundation sums up the three main principles1 eliminating waste and pollution; circulating products and materials at their highest value; and regenerating nature. “In a circular economy, products and materials are kept in circulation through processes like maintenance, reuse, refurbishment, remanufacture, recycling, and composting. The circular economy tackles climate change and other global challenges, like biodiversity loss, waste, and pollution, by decoupling economic activity from the consumption of finite resources1.”
Exploring the upcycling potential of brewer's byproducts
Valorizing brewery byproducts isn’t just about generating profits, it’s about finding new ways of supporting sustainable biobased manufacturing and fostering innovation that will underly a circular economy, as well as turning what has traditionally been a cost burden into a true profit center.
Today - and for just about every sector of industry - a circular economy is not the norm. As the United Nations Development Program points out, our current economic systems are linear, and only 7.2% of used materials are cycled back into our economies after use2. Product design, extended lifespan, recycling, and repurposing/regeneration will all play a role in converting linear, to circularized economies. And one way of doing this is to help industry utilize waste streams as sustainable, and commercially viable resources for greener manufacturing3.
The food industry is already innovating to reduce, recycle, and repurpose waste. Scotland-based biotech company, MiAlgae, for example, describes how it is recycling byproducts from the whisky industry for use growing omega 3-rich microalgae, and so reduce reliance on wild-caught fish as a source of this dietary supplement. Poland’s technology company Ecobean, explains how it is converting spent coffee grounds into products including biodegradable flower pots, and is extracting oil fractions from coffee grounds that can be used as bioadditives for fuels. In Finland, CH-Bioforce says that its biomass biofractionation technology can extract key biomaterials from many forms of biomass. These materials can then be exploited as new feedstocks for applications in sectors ranging from chemicals, to textiles and packaging.
So, while most of the millions of tons of BSG and BSY produced globally by the brewery industry every year is currently sold off cheaply for animal food, these byproducts afford industry a rich, enduring, and year-round source of exploitable protein- and fiber-packed components.
From brewery to biopolymers and biofuels
Using BSG as the feedstock for creating the biomolecules that are then used to manufacture biodegradeable biopolymers such as poly-lactic acid (PLA) reduces reliance on manufacturing polluting, non-biodegradable plastics from fossil fuels. Producing biofuels and alternative plant-based proteins from BSG and BSY also means that agricultural land that would have been used to plant corn and other feedstocks for these industrial applications may instead be used to plant crops for feeding people. And, unlike some crops that are planted for industrial applications, BSY and BSG are available all year round, so there is no seasonality, and no associated bottlenecks to supply.
Alternative proteins
There is huge global demand for plant-based proteins as an alternative to animal-derived proteins. One estimate suggests that the global market for plant-based proteins could reach $22.5 billion by 2032. Producing plant-based proteins from BSY doesn’t require the use of land either to plant crops, or as pasture for cattle and sheep. Raw BSY material is also available all year, rather than seasonally. And because plant-based proteins can be easier to transport than live animals and fresh meat, this further reduces carbon footprint associated with transport and cold-chain.
Biodegradeable biopolymers
The biomolecule lactic acid is used to generate the biodegradeable polymer poly-lactic acid (PLA), a polyester that is used widely to make products such as plastic film, and other packaging materials, and medical devices. The polymer is also used widely in the automotive and electronics sectors. PLA is typically made using fermented plant starch derived from crops including corn, cassava, maize, sugar cane or sugar beet. Harnessing BSG for lactic acid production can free up the land for planting valuable food crops for local populations, or for export. And using BSG as a starting material for producing lactic acid could ultimately benefit the breweries themselves, as one common use for PLA is to create beverage bottles and other packaging materials that the breweries can then use for their own products.
Let's get talking
Here at GEA we offer a wide range of efficient technologies that can be used for processing BSG and BSY into diverse end products. We believe we are uniquely placed to offer components, equipment, and potentially complete lines, from reception to finished products, packaged on a pallet. Our aim is to provide you with solutions that can unlock the full economic potential of these raw materials efficiently and sustainably.
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