How to brew beer better: Less water, less energy, more innovation

The U.S. produces beer. A lot of beer. In 2013, over 195 million barrels — each barrel equaling 31 gallons — were produced. When you consider that it typically takes between four to 10 pints of water to produce one pint of beer — you do the math.

And producing good suds takes more than water. Consider the energy needed for compressed air, lighting, refrigeration and other demands. Couple those with the waste products remaining after the brewing process is complete, and it all adds up to a resource-rich and waste-producing libation.

The U.S. beer market has been relatively flat, even slightly down, with overall sales of beer declining 1.9 percent in 2013. Enter an innovative and sustainability-minded group of craft brewers that has set the beer market on its ear. Sales of craft beer is on a significant rise, with a jump of 17.2 percent in sales in 2013 driven by market demands for local food and beverages.

BREW BIZ的两个部门都对其对可持续性的承诺产生重大影响。竞彩足球app怎么下载当谈到主要酿酒商，销售国家领先的啤酒厂Anheuser-Busch，已经采取了一些尖锐措施，如减少水的使用在过去的四年中，37％，使用可再生燃料（沼气，垃圾填埋天然气和太阳能）酿造六个啤酒，其中酿造99％的啤酒厂中的固体废物，并在铝，纤维和玻璃中减少材料打包。

It makes sense that water usage is one of the most significant resources that goes into brewing beer. Anheuser-Busch took on an interesting marketing campaign recently to encourage men to reduce their use of water. The campaign asked men to stop shaving in the weeks leading up to World Environment Day in June. More than 2,300 of its employees took up the challenge and stopped shaving for two weeks. It's estimated that because the average shave takes five gallons of water, they saved over 160,000 gallons. (Sorry, A-B, but the Boston Red Sox wereway ahead of you。）

On a serious note, Anheuser-Busch has reduced its ratio of water used to beer produced to 3.5-to-1 (excluding the amount of water it takes to grow the crops).

Craft brewers get crafty with water use

That's a goal that many smaller craft brewers are shooting for, but they have their challenges. Craft brewed beers use more hops for that great flavor that beer drinkers want (which is also leading to a shortage of hops, but that'sanother story) and those hops require more water to process.

New Belgium是A.可持续思想的酿酒师这具有将其生产过程中的水还原为3.5至1的比例。在过去几年中，生产比桶的“霍普尔”啤酒和对更多瓶子的需求正在促进其水效率下降，但它最近在其整个设施中增加了众多，以解决任何浪费的水效率机会。

全帆酿造公司已经熟知用于消耗啤酒的相对较低百分比的水的方法，但今年全帆甚至进一步改善。公司安装了梅拉mash filter that improved its water efficiency even more. Full Sail's 2.5-to-1 water used to beer produced ratio is one of the best in the industry.

啤酒需要能量

无论是在酿造过程中，照明，加热或冷却设施还是产品制冷，能源使用是另一个顶级资源汇。能源也很高，因此努力节约能量显着地将改善操作底线。

The工艺酿造联盟如有知名品牌，如Widmer Brothers，Redhook，Kona酿造公司和遗漏啤酒（由Widmer Brothers酿造），是一种酿酒者，其目光在于能源和其他保护机会。“我们正在不断寻求能源和水处的效率机会，实现这可以转化为大笔资金，”CBA的可持续发展经理朱莉娅人说。竞彩足球app怎么下载“我们发现，即使是简单的，快速的修复也会导致显着的节能。在我们追求以可持续的方式制作我们的啤酒，我们已经针对压缩空气泄漏以及风扇骑在我们的冷藏空间中，并立即看到好处。“固定在其啤酒厂的压缩空气泄漏可以在能源成本上每年估计为20,000美元。

Sierra Nevadabeer is one of the best-selling craft brews and the company is fully committed to its sustainability mission. Sierra Nevada, based in Chico, Calif., prides itself on owning one of the最大的私人太阳阵列in the country. The company's 10,573 panels on its brewery roof and parking lot, at the on-site daycare and at its private rail spur produce two megawatts of DC power and provide the brewery with nearly 20 percent of its energy needs.

In addition, Sierra Nevada is the only brewery in the country to house its own hydrogen fuel cells. The fuel cells produce one megawatt of power. Together, on a clear and sunny summer day, the two supply about 90 percent of the brewery's energy, according to thedashboard在公司的网站上。

Refrigeration accounts for about 35 percent of a brewery's electricity bill. Inadequate insulation of cold storage areas and pipes carrying steam or cold fluids, air infiltration, open cooler doors and other energy wasters can have a big influence on energy costs. Using an infrared camera at乔治堡啤酒厂in Astoria, Ore., PPRC Industrial Engineer Michelle Gaither and staff at Fort George discovered inefficiencies from heat loss on uninsulated steam pipes and a small compression tank, and from the surface of the hot tank, especially the uninsulated door. They found cold losses from refrigerant lines and cold storage areas, especially around doors. Insulation was specified for the pipes, and a high-speed insulated roll-up door was recommended for cold storage.

修复啤酒浪费

At the end of the brewing process, what's left is delicious bottles of amber refreshment — and literally tons of spent grain, barley husks and hops — every day. Much of that waste goes into animal feed or compost, but some brewers are coming up with alternate uses for the waste.

去年，阿拉斯加泡菜有限公司in Juneau installed a unique boiler system that burns the waste and turns it into steam that powers a majority of the brewery's operations. Some brewers are developing unique products. Waste brew grains are going into everything from pizza crusts to lip balms.

堆肥是处理浪费的一种方式。为了应对缺乏粘接设施，塞拉尼达达开发了它所谓的“Hotroot”堆肥系统。从酿造过程中堆叠储存余量以及食品服务仍然存在，过滤器仍然是从其运营和音乐会场所的废纸。堆肥用于丰富跳田和餐厅和员工花园。

一种新的啤酒标签

基于华盛顿的组织环境教育研究所开发了一个生态标签程序，允许酿酒师在其标签上显示它们对环境的影响。它看起来类似于食物上的营养标签。标签报告对碳，能量和水的影响。在俄勒冈州，Hopworks Urban Brewingand Fort George Brewery have adopted the labels.

除了上面的人之外，还通过酿酒师，大而小竞彩足球app怎么下载的可持续发展领域，因为上面的那些，因为它们的底线和他们的消费者需求为环境而有利于创造性和创新的解决方案。与地狱或高西瓜，Lagunitas，光滑的Hooperator，战术核企鹅和黄雪销售的品牌名称，速度迅速，你还期待什么？

上图由Redhook啤酒Craig Damlo通过flickr。