Birgit Schnitzenbaumer (1); (1) Döhler, Darmstadt, Germany
IBD Symposium
Tuesday, August 16 • 8:15–11:30 a.m.
Tower Building, Second Level, Grand Ballroom
Around 1% of the world population suffers from coeliac disease;
another 6-10% of people are sensitive to gluten and therefore look for
gluten-free alternatives. With regard to beer, the most natural way for
producing gluten-free products is the use of naturally gluten-free raw
materials such as buckwheat, sorghum, rice, or corn. However, the taste
of those beers is not comparable to traditional beer brewed with 100%
malted barley and/or wheat, which is why they generally have a low
consumer acceptance. A special technology, developed and patented by
Doehler, makes it now possible to remove virtually all the gluten from
traditionally brewed beer without impacting the foam, color, and taste
of the final product. Furthermore, this technology for gluten reduction
is unique in terms of its GMO-free status; the required enzymes are
produced without the use of genetically modified microorganisms. The
Doehler technology can be integrated into the classic brewing process
without significant modifications and is based on enzyme treatment with
subsequent filtration. Transglutaminase is crosslinking glutamyl and
lysyl residues of proteins or peptides, which are then removed by
filtering the beer.
After successfully qualifying and working as a taxation
consultant, Birgit Schnitzenbaumer studied brewing and beverage
technology at the Technical University of Munich in Weihenstephan,
Germany. She graduated as Dipl.-Ing. (M.Sc.) in Brewing and Beverage
Technology in 2009. Birgit was awarded a full doctoral scholarship by
the InBev-Baillet Latour Fund and studied her Ph.D. degree on the
application of enzymes when brewing with unmalted oats and sorghum at
the University College Cork in Ireland. Since July 2014, Birgit works as
product manager for Cereal & Malt Ingredients at Döhler in
Darmstadt, Germany.
