Keep the flavor, hold the alcohol
10 Jan 2024
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English
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If you needed an excuse to enjoy a beer (responsibly, of course), it’s International Beer Day! Here’s how DSM is driving sustainable brewing ambitions with brewers big and small.
The first Friday of every August is designated as International Beer Day - a global celebration of beer and a tasty excuse to raise a glass with family and friends. It’s also an opportunity to appreciate today’s dynamic brewing industry, where DSM is forging strong relationships with brewers and offering solutions for more sustainably produced - and delicious - beers.
At the moment, sustainability is high on the agenda of brewers as they seek new ways of doing business in a changing industry. It’s becoming clear that climate change will likely impact the quality and availability of raw materials, which will have damaging effects for both producers and consumers. In addition, sustainable brewing enables cost savings, which can drive improved performance. In response, brewers are making commitments to more sustainable brewing practices.
Heineken, for example, launched its ‘Drop the C’ program to articulate its ambitions for reduced carbon emissions. Carlsberg is using glue (instead of plastic) to keep six packs of beer cans together (read about their sustainable initiatives here), and ABInbev is running a program to support local farmers in Africa from which they source cereals for brewing. You can read more about ABInbev's sustainable ambitions here.
Smaller breweries want to make a difference too, and conversations in the world of craft brewing increasingly revolve around the opportunities to embrace and drive sustainability agendas.
A recent DSM survey of craft beer consumers found that over half will choose a product that’s advertised as sustainable. These consumers also value ‘locally brewed’ beers, although responses indicate this is less about geographic origin and more about how a beer is made.
These trends are great news for DSM. We can help brewers meet their sustainability targets with a range of solutions that enable brewers to lower their footprint, reduce energy usage and successfully use local raw materials. Brewers Clarex® is the most sustainable solution for beer stabilization without waste. By shortening the process and reducing cooling, it enables energy and CO2 savings. The impact is big: brewers using Brewers Clarex® can cut their carbon footprint by 5-6%.
Brewers Compass®, an optimized liquid enzyme blend, enables brewers to replace malt (very energy intensive) with barley, which can dramatically cut water and energy use. Additionally, our brewing enzymes allow for brewing with other types of raw materials, encouraging innovation and experimentation within the industry. An equally (if not more) important side benefit is the economic boost that comes from sourcing local materials, particularly in developing regions. We continue to engage with the industry in sustainability-focused conversations that illustrate that sustainable growth is possible, for brewers and for DSM.
As we mark International Beer Day, it’s clear that there’s more than meets the eye in that frosty glass of beer. Whether your favorite is dark and bitter, light and refreshing or somewhere in between - maybe even gluten or alcohol free - there’s a lot to celebrate in the brewing industry right now. Cheers to that!
Recent DSM survey founds that over half of craft beer drinkers will choose a product that’s advertised as sustainable.
Read more about our easy-to-use brewing enzymes.
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01 August 2019
10 Jan 2024
