Energy Efficiency in Brewing and Distilling
Brewing and distilling are energy-intensive processes, requiring precise temperature control at every stage, from heating mash tuns to managing fermentation and distillation. Much of this valuable thermal energy is often wasted, escaping through vented steam, hot wastewater, and condenser discharge.
Not only is this a significant environmental concern as the UK strives towards Net Zero, but it also comes at a significant cost to your business during an era of surging energy prices.
In a typical brewery or distillery, heat is frequently lost from:
Vapour condensers during distillation
Hot effluent from CIP (clean-in-place) systems or pasteurisation
Boiler flue gases without economisers
Cooling systems releasing heat via towers or chillers
The good news? Much of this energy can be recovered and reused within your processes - forming the basis of a circular thermal system, where waste heat is no longer lost but instead looped back in to power the operation more sustainably.
How to Make Your Waste Heat Become Working Heat
This heat can be recovered using a range of innovative technologies:
- Plate and shell heat exchangers can reclaim heat from outgoing product or wastewater streams and use it to preheat incoming ones - reducing load on boilers and chillers.
- Heat pumps lift low-grade heat to usable temperatures for preheating, cleaning, or hot water generation. This makes them ideal for supporting CIP systems, wash cycles, and other hot utility demands without drawing heavily on primary fuel sources. Steam heat pumps, in particular, are also well suited to distilleries and breweries with steam-based processes - they can recover waste heat and convert it into usable steam.
- Thermal storage systems allow recovered energy to be stored and used during peak demand, smoothing out energy loads across production cycles.
- Economisers, fitted to boilers can capture flue gas heat for feedwater preheating.
Why Heat Recovery Matters
With energy prices continuing to fluctuate and decarbonisation targets approaching, improving thermal efficiency has moved from a nice-to-have to a strategic priority. Effective heat recovery can:
- Cut energy bills. Well-designed recovery systems can cut energy costs significantly, depending on site configuration and process profile
- Reduce reliance on fossil fuels
- Improve overall plant energy balance
- Lower Scope 1 and 2 emissions
- Enhance site resilience in the face of regulatory or fuel supply changes
And importantly, it builds a self-sustaining energy loop - where waste heat becomes working heat - cutting both costs and carbon.
Is Your Site Missing an Opportunity?
Not sure if your site is under-utilising steam or losing recoverable heat? Here are a few signs to look out for:
- Boiler or steam systems running continuously even during partial-load periods
- Hot water from CIP or rinsing systems is discharged without reuse
- Cooling towers run year-round to shed heat
- No visible system for capturing flue gas or vapour heat.
If these sound familiar, there’s likely an opportunity to cut costs and reduce emissions with targeted heat recovery improvements. If you’re unsure, contact our energy engineers today.
Why Choose Veolia?
We specialise in advanced heat recovery systems tailored to how your facility actually works, not based on generic templates. We work with breweries and distilleries across the UK to:
Identify where heat is commonly lost.
Understand how that heat can be recovered without disrupting existing flows or compromising hygiene.
Integrate recovery solutions that improve efficiency across multiple systems, not just a single process.
Utilising these bespoke systems, we effectively capture lost energy and redirect it to preheat feed streams, raise steam, or aid in cleaning processes, significantly reducing operational costs. Our commitment doesn’t end with installation; we continuously monitor and optimise your systems to ensure reliability, efficiency, and compliance, supporting your sustainable growth and operational excellence.
We understand how heat recovery interacts with safety protocols, cleaning schedules, and batch sequencing. That’s why our approach is always bespoke, technically rigorous, and grounded in your production reality.
Take the Next Step
We’re proud to support the heritage and innovation behind UK brewing and distilling.
Partner with Veolia to advance your brewery or distillery’s energy efficiency efforts and move closer to your Net Zero goals.
