Sustainability Session
Neva Parker, White Labs, Inc, San Diego, California, USA
ABSTRACT: With an ever-growing demand for manufacturing in
the beer industry, a large carbon footprint can be created from various
processes. Since regional and craft brewing have displayed marked
increases in prior years, demand for fermentation yeast through
propagation has increased significantly. The yeast production process
itself can create a high volume of both water waste and solid product
waste from spent or discarded yeast slurries. Propagating yeast that is
suitable for successful brewing also typically results in high energy
demands. In an effort to achieve a minimal environmental impact,
recapturing waste from the propagation process, as well as any spent
product, is of critical importance. Using technology such as tangential
filtration, laboratories are capable of recycling spent growth media
from yeast propagations and producing what is essentially water, which
can be carried back through processing. This obtained water can be used
for applications ranging from cleaning to further production of growth
medium. In addition, the yeast itself can be repurposed. Yeast that is
slated to be discarded or even spent yeast from production or lab-scale
fermentations can be treated to produce yeast nutrients that would,
again, be returned to the cycle. To maintain a minimal amount of energy
to execute the reprocessing, a few components need to be put into place
in the plant. This presentation covers the specific methods used to
repurpose both spent growth media and discarded yeast, while maintaining
a minimal energy load, and broadening the manufacturer’s sustainability
within the global market.
Neva Parker has been with White
Labs, Inc. since 2002. She earned her bachelor’s degree in microbiology
from Gonzaga University in Spokane, WA, and first became interested in
the brewing industry while studying abroad in London. Neva currently
manages laboratory operations for headquarters in San Diego and the
R&D facility in Davis, CA. She is also responsible for developing
the White Labs training and consulting program. She has presented at
several workshops and conferences and published articles for brewing
magazines. She is an active member of the American Society of Brewing
Chemists and the Master Brewers Association of the Americas.
VIEW PRESENTATION 216
