Spent grain is a side-stream from brewing, and it amounts to around 85% of the total by-products that come from the process. Given how many breweries there are all over the world, huge quantities of spent grain are produced each year – around 40 million tons of it, to be more precise1. Today, a majority of this ends up as animal feed, biogas, or in landfills, but there is another growing use case – as a raw material for plant-based food and beverages.
As a by-product, spent grain does impact the environment. However, finding ways to utilise it can mitigate that impact while offering wider benefits. Its nutritional values make it a great candidate for use in food and beverages, and it is both cost-efficient and widely available. The main challenge is that it can spoil relatively quickly, so in the absence of efficient preservation methods, it must be used in good time.
However, when utilised correctly, it can have a range of positive impacts in terms of circularity and sustainability, and can lead to innovations that boost your business.
Mitigating environmental impact
Every ton of spent grain in landfill is responsible for around 513 kg of CO2 emissions2. At the moment, it is believed that around 70% of spent grain produced each year is used in animal feed, and around 10% is used in biogas. That means that roughly 20% of all spent grain is believed to go to landfill, which adds carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.
However, if we can use this portion as an ingredient for food and beverages instead, it will directly contribute to reducing the carbon footprint of spent grain, and of the brewing industry in general, while bringing a by-product directly back into the human food chain.
Efficient nutrition
Spent grain has a good nutritional profile that makes it an ideal food source. It contains fibre, minerals and proteins, and as it’s a natural by-product of the brewing process, it’s cost effective to produce. Together, this means that spent grain can contribute to greater food security, as more food and beverages can be produced for less, and this can help feed a growing global population.
The fact that this ingredient is affordable and widely available also means that it has the potential to make the aforementioned nutrients more accessible and affordable and, in turn, help address the fact that 2.4 billion people struggle to get regular access to sufficient food3. The key is finding the optimal way to capture value from this side-stream.
Economic sense
Waste is a negative for any business, and if a significant side-stream can be upcycled, sold, or turned into something of value, it’s extremely attractive. With spent grain, as there’s so much available, it could be a significant source of income for breweries all over the world. The key lies in finding a business model that can help breweries promote and valorise spent grain for plant-based beverage manufacturing, either on their own, through food and beverage producers, or through brand owners.
Grain with great potential
Given the market for upcycled and plant-based food and beverages continues to grow, there is significant potential for spent grain to become a valuable, efficient and widely used ingredient. It’s low in sugar, lactose free, and contains good levels of protein and fibre. It can be used as a base for plant-based milk drinks, or as an ingredient in vegan or vegetarian foods. It’s flexible, it fits with market trends, and in using spent grain, a side-stream becomes something that can contribute not only to a business’ bottom line, but to global food security.
