Waste: A Game of Snakes and Ladders? : Brewing and Distilling
In a highly taxed consumer industry operating on tight margins, waste management is subject to the same close scrutiny as all aspects of industrial operation. Three-quarters (75 per cent) of the brewing and distilling industry keeps track of waste spend and the sector is most likely to monitor the waste practices of the competition (43 per cent).
As a static industry - beer production was at the same level in 1991 as it was in 1891 - controlling operating costs is key to profitability. Effective waste management is driven by a need to control processing costs, so it is therefore not surprising that the majority of companies operate waste minimisation (95 per cent) and recycling programmes (95 per cent). In addition, almost half (48 per cent) have a formal environmental management system in place, and of the rest a further 58 per cent are currently planning one.
Energy saving is the top priority for those companies working on waste minimisation programmes, followed by process change (64 per cent) and packaging (29 per cent). The industry uses large quantities of low grade energy and any potential saving can reduce unit cost significantly. Process change is necessarily viewed with caution in brewing and distilling, even though it lies at the heart of many waste management problems. As a traditional industry, any cost saving resulting from innovation needs to be carefully weighed against product quality, especially in an industry where products take a long time to mature and come to market. (It might take up to ten years before flavour change becomes evident.)
Financial reasons are the clear incentive to recycle (96 per cent), with share prices, staff concerns and consumer pressure playing a negligible part in the decision. The industry is strong on recycling organic waste (90 per cent) largely because this is seen as a by-product with a sales value - as cattle feed or nutrient.
Nearly all (95 per cent) recycle glass. With the growing trend for beer to be sold in 'one trip' bottles, the management of the glass waste stream is a substantial cost issue. For example, if landfill costs were to increase by £10 per tonne by the end of the century, waste costs on a 100 gramme bottle would increase by 0.1 pence per bottle - significant in an industry that calculates margins to the third decimal point on each unit. However, schemes for returning bottles can also become environmental red herrings and need to be carefully managed to account for transportation and cleaning costs.
Although the sector produces a great deal of aqueous effluent, it still has some way to go in developing recycling schemes for these streams. A total of 85 per cent of companies do not recycle aqueous effluent. Water, as the most expensive commodity in this sector - it takes 10 gallons of water to produce one pint of beer - is sometimes recycled back as low grade energy, but a number of companies still do not process 'waste' water in this way.
As a result of tight margins, the sector is acutely cost conscious. Three in four (75 per cent) say they know how much they spend on waste. This attitude lies at the heart of this sector's strong conviction that waste costs are escalating - both total waste costs (65 per cent) and unit waste costs (63 per cent).
Surprisingly, most (80 per cent) believe that the tonnage of waste will fall or stay the same.
This view is partly explained by a general understanding of the rising costs of waste disposal, but is perhaps more fully explained by the fact that this sector has developed waste disposal schemes in conjunction with local authorities and water companies and is subject to their cost increases.
While only 38 per cent see waste control as a major factor in terms of competitive edge, practice is seen to belie this figure. The brewing and distilling industry is in some ways a 'model' for waste management practice: counting the cost and implementing waste management schemes which, at their best, actually convert the potential of waste - as a byproduct to be sold or recycled for energy - to add directly to the company's bottom line.
The survey interviewed whisky companies, maltsters and brewers. With the majority of whisky companies and maltsters located in Scotland, geographical spread was necessarily limited.
MAIN FINDINGS
- Three out of four companies know the cost of waste to their business
- Brewers and distillers are most likely (65 per cent) to think that total waste costs will rise
- The industry is most likely to keep an eye on competitor waste practice (43 per cent)
- 96 per cent said that they recycle to save money
INDUSTRY FACTS
The brewing and distilling industry . . .
- 30,000 people are employed in the industry
- Beer sales were worth £14 billion in 1993
- Excise and VAT on beer alone raised £4,397 million in revenue for the government in 1992
- The UK is the world's seventh largest beer producer
- In 1992 180.5 pints of beer were consumed per head in the UK
- Scotch is the biggest 'branded spirit' world wide
Legislation
- Drinking water directives
- Packaging directives
- Landfill levies
- Sludges to land
Process Change
- Producer responsibility levy initiatives
- Packaging standardisation of materials (glass cullet and plastics segregation)
Environmental Effects
- Aquifer contamination (Cambridge Water vs E. Counties Leather)
- Increased recycling of packaging
- NRA statutory water quality objectives
