Beverage Industry Wastewater Treatment
High organic load, pH swings and seasonal production. We treat the wastewater of the beverage industry.
How is beverage plant wastewater treated? Beverage wastewater (soft drinks, syrup, fruit juice, beer) carries a high COD originating from dissolved sugar (typically 1,500-10,000 mg/L, and it can exceed 10,000 mg/L on sugary drink and syrup lines), a variable pH coming from CIP and bottle washing cycles, and seasonal flow fluctuations. Because sugar is readily biodegradable, the treatment logic is simple but demands discipline: first stabilize the load and the pH with equalization + pH adjustment, remove suspended and floating matter with DAF, then break down the COD with an anaerobic (at high loads) + aerobic biological stage. The critical point is to protect the biological stage from CIP pH shocks and flow peaks. GESU has built this line in the soft drink industry at the Kristal Kola plant.
Wastewater Challenges of the Beverage Industry
Challenges
- Beer / alcohol effluents — yeast, sugar, alcohol — very high BOD
- CIP wash waters — NaOH, HNO₃, disinfectant — pH shock
- Bottle washing and filling losses — label pulp, broken glass
The GESU Solution
Why GESU?
- Experience with the anaerobic + aerobic combination
- Energy recovery through biogas
- Design of CIP water equalization systems
- Seasonal capacity flexibility (SBR)
Our beverage reference
In the beverage industry we built our wastewater treatment solution at the soft drink producer Kristal Kola. We solve the high dissolved COD and variable pH character of sugary drink wastewater with our 30 years of food & beverage experience.
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Beverage Industry — Frequently Asked Questions
We have compiled the questions our customers ask most often. If you can't find the answer you are looking for, get in touch with us.
What are the main characteristics and problems of beverage plant wastewater?
In the beverage industry (soft drinks, beer, wine) the wastewater contains a high COD (1,500-10,000 mg/L), a readily biodegradable organic load originating from sugar and alcohol, a low pH and residues of CIP cleaning chemicals. For breweries the wastewater-to-product ratio is in the range of 3-7 m³/m³.
Which treatment technologies are preferred for beverage wastewater?
Because of the high COD, anaerobic pre-treatment (UASB/EGSB) with biogas recovery stands out. It is followed by a final treatment stage with MBR or SBR. For breweries the anaerobic + aerobic combination is the standard approach. GESU offers advanced biological treatment + water reclamation (RO) solutions for the beverage industry.
Is a capacity increase possible at an existing beverage plant?
Yes. By adding anaerobic pre-treatment to an existing aerobic biological plant, the COD load capacity can be increased significantly (typically by a factor of 2-3). GESU has experience with anaerobic + aerobic applications at the Kristal Kola soft drink plant and across the wider food industry; the exact capacity increase is determined from the existing plant flow rate and a composite sample analysis.
Why is the pH of beverage wastewater so variable, and how is it controlled?
In beverage production the CIP (clean-in-place) cycles use acidic and caustic solutions in turn; once bottle/can washing and disinfection steps are added, the wastewater pH swings over a wide range during the day. Because biological treatment works within a narrow pH band (roughly 6.5-8.5), the biomass is damaged unless the pH is stabilized in an equalization tank with automatic dosing. This is why the first step of the GESU treatment line is equalization + pH adjustment.
Why can COD exceed 10,000 mg/L on sugary drink and syrup lines?
The main source of COD in beverage wastewater is dissolved sugar and syrup. In standard soft drink and fruit juice production the inlet COD is typically in the 1,500-10,000 mg/L band; however, on lines with intensive syrup preparation, tank/line draining and high product loss this value can exceed 10,000 mg/L. Because sugar is readily biodegradable, a high COD is removed efficiently with correct equalization and an anaerobic + aerobic stage.
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