Sustainability Session
Steve Froggett, Froggett & Associates, LLC
Co-author(s): Joseph Cotruvo, Joe Cotruvo & Associates, LLC, USA;
Richard Canady, Risk Science Innovation and Application Center of
Excellence, International Life Sciences Institute – Research Foundation,
USA
ABSTRACT: Water is a critical resource and raw material
for breweries in particular and the beverage industry in general, as
both rely on water for production and facility maintenance. This
recognition has led many companies to launch water stewardship
initiatives in an effort to drive conservation and efficient use of
water at their facilities. Individual breweries globally have undertaken
the complex task of reducing their water footprint by increasing water
reuse for non-potable uses. For example, published case studies from
Australia show significant reductions in water use through efficient and
safe reuse at their facilities. In one brewery, recycled water is used
for first rinse cleaning of storage vessels, boiler feed, and cooling
tower makeup, while at another brewery water is reused to irrigate an
adjacent golf course. Overall water costs were reduced in both cases.
Both cases illustrate the potential for sustainable use and reuse of
water within breweries, reduction of the facility’s water footprint, and
the challenges faced when developing a reuse system. Pragmatic
guidelines outlining management and engineering needs to enable the safe
and efficient reuse of water in bottling facilities is lacking. To
address this need, the Research Foundation of the International Life
Science Institute has convened an expert panel to draft guidelines that
will outline the key considerations a plant must make when deciding if
reuse is possible and beneficial at their plant. The guidelines will
then present a detailed “how-to” enabling facility managers and
engineers to plan a safe reuse system based on a hazard analysis and
critical control points management approach. In addition, the guidelines
will address monitoring, evaluation, and the training necessary to
maintain the daily operation of the reuse system within established
safety parameters. The use of these guidelines is intended to enable
brewers and bottlers to significantly reduce water consumption and
wastewater discharge in a cost-effective manner, but to do so in ways
that reliably produce safe water of assured quality that is appropriate
for the intended use in various processes and product production. For
this to occur, the guidelines must be internationally acceptable to
producers, regulators, and consumers concerned with product integrity
and protection of the environment. The guidelines committee is an
international expert group with a wide range of experience, and the
guidelines will be reviewed by a broad spectrum of stakeholders
interested in the safe reuse of water, including perspectives on the
perceptual or acceptability aspects of reusing water, prior to
completion.
Steve Froggett received a Ph.D. degree in
neuroscience and behavior from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst,
in 2002 and has served as a visiting scientist and faculty at the
University of Kathmandu Medical School, Nairobi College of Health
Science, and Patan Academy of Health Sciences. Subsequently, Steve
served as a diplomacy fellow and as a scientific advisor in the Foreign
Agricultural Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, advising on a
broad range of issues related to new and emerging technologies for food
production and sustainability. Since 2010, Steve has consulted for the
Research Foundation of the International Life Sciences Institute and
manages the efficient and safe water reuse guideline development
project.
VIEW PRESENTATION 215
