Instant beer powder is here thanks to a German monastic brewery
Klosterbrauerei Neuzelle, a German monastery-based brewery, has developed what they call the "world's first powdered beer." The zero-alcohol, high-dextrin beer was brewed as usual before it was processed and turned into a powder or granulate that dissolved in water.
The product was developed with funding from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) and collaboration with other unnamed "technology partners." The company behind it, the German brewery Klosterbrauerei Neuzelle, wants to change how beer is made by shortening the process and using less raw materials and energy. The brewery initially plans to market the powdered beer in small quantities until mid-2023 to test the product's reception.
However, the company wants to scale up production and introduce alcoholic versions. While powdered beer is still relatively new, other instant powders, like the one that Kingfisher released in 2019, are not as popular or well-known as traditional beer.
One of the primary advantages of powdered beer is that it is much lighter than traditional beer, which promises massive savings on transport costs. Due to its lightweight nature, it can be shipped at only 10% of the weight of conventional beer (which is 90% water anyway), making it an appealing product for far-flung markets such as Asia and Africa, where transport costs are higher.
"The time is ripe to put classic beer production and logistics to the test [given] the way we treat our environment," commented a shareholder of the Neuzelle monastery brewery, Helmut Fritsche, on the revolutionary project. “Billions of liters of water are transported to consumers worldwide because beer consists of up to 90 percent water. From an environmental point of view, we are already saving on transport, but not yet on the use of resources and [production costs],” he added.
Klosterbrauerei Neuzelle hopes to target these markets first, then move on to other global resellers, making it a core target group.
Even though there may be benefits, the company knows that people who like classic pilsner and craft beer may be skeptical of the product, especially in Germany. Therefore, Klosterbrauerei Neuzelle has identified global resellers as their primary target group. These re-sellers don't have to know anything about brewing, but they can make the granules work for the end consumer. The company believes that the powder's success is not just about bringing a new product onto the market but about disrupting the beer business model.
Investors are talking with Klosterbrauerei Neuzelle about how to put its new business model into action and pay for it. To save as much money as possible, the brewery intends to develop the manufacturing process of the basic product for the beer powder. From an environmental point of view, the company has already saved on transportation, but they still need to focus on using resources and reducing production costs.
The creation of this product by Klosterbrauerei Neuzelle has the potential to change how beer is made, cut costs and environmental damage, and be a disruptive and revolutionary step forward in the beer industry.