"German Beers Contain Plastic"

Discussion in 'Beer News' started by MtnSoup, Sep 9, 2014.

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  1. MtnSoup

    MtnSoup Initiate (0) May 20, 2013 Colorado

    #1 MtnSoup, Sep 9, 2014
  2. 5thOhio

    5thOhio Pooh-Bah (1,571) May 13, 2007 South Carolina
    Pooh-Bah

    In other news, germs are everywhere too.
     
    #2 5thOhio, Sep 9, 2014
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  3. Jirin

    Jirin Initiate (0) Apr 28, 2013 Massachusetts

    I think the writer of this article has an OCD friend he's trying to get off alcohol.
     
    #3 Jirin, Sep 9, 2014
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  4. drtth

    drtth Initiate (0) Nov 25, 2007 Pennsylvania
    In Memoriam

    At least one related source article published in PubMed so has pretty high credibility:

    Gerd Liebezeit and Elisabeth Liebezeit, Food Additives and Contaminants - Part A Chemistry, Analysis, Control, Exposure and Risk Assessment 07/2014; DOI: 10.1080/19440049.2014.945099

    Apparently looking for things such as plastic in beer is what they do.
     
    #4 drtth, Sep 9, 2014
    Last edited: Sep 9, 2014
  5. Todd

    Todd Founder (13,518) Aug 23, 1996 Finland
    STAFF Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah

    Accordingly to many studies/sources, nearly all water sources on planet Earth now contain "plastic" ... so this is a no duh moment, but here's the PR that was spammed to beer media recently.

    ---

    Planning a visit to Germany? You might want to avoid the beer…

    If you’re going to Oktoberfest next month to enjoy the delights of German beer, you might get more than you bargained for. New research has revealed the extent to which German beers may be contaminated by foreign substances, most notably, microplastics.

    The research, published this month in Food Additives and Contaminants: Part A, analysed 24 beer samples from local supermarkets and included both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beer. Contamination was found in all cases. Defining microplastics as ‘fibres, films, fragments or granular particles smaller than 5 mm in size and made of synthetic polymers’, the authors found that regular tap water may also be subject to this contamination.

    Though contamination was found in all instances, it was not possible to establish any one microplastic as being more dominant than the others. Indeed, the contributions ranged from 5% to 71% for granular material, from 14% to 87% for fragments and from 3% to 57% for fibres and varied depending on the brand of the beer.

    The study also indicated that the contamination wasn’t just caused by microplastics, indeed one beer sample even contained an almost complete insect belonging to the Order Thysanoptera. Moreover, three samples revealed glass shards of up to about 600 μm size.

    The authors of the article, Gerd Liebezeit & Elisabeth Liebezeit conclude their research by suggesting possible causes for the contamination, citing the materials used in the production process and the clothes and skin of brewery workers as likely sources.

    Read the full article, free of charge, online at: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/19440049.2014.945099

    NOTE TO JOURNALISTS AND EDITORS

    Please reference the article as “Synthetic particles as contaminants in German beers”, by Gerd Liebezeit & Elisabeth Liebezeit, Food Additives and Contaminants: Part A, published by Taylor & Francis.

    Visit our newsroom at: http://newsroom.taylorandfrancisgroup.com/

    -----------------------------------------

    About Taylor & Francis Group

    -----------------------------------------

    Taylor & Francis Group partners with researchers, scholarly societies, universities and libraries worldwide to bring knowledge to life. As one of the world’s leading publishers of scholarly journals, books, ebooks and reference works our content spans all areas of Humanities, Social Sciences, Behavioural Sciences, Science, and Technology and Medicine.

    From our network of offices in Oxford, New York, Philadelphia, Boca Raton, Boston, Melbourne, Singapore, Beijing, Tokyo, Stockholm, New Delhi and Johannesburg, Taylor & Francis staff provide local expertise and support to our editors, societies and authors and tailored, efficient customer service to our library colleagues.

    ###
     
    #5 Todd, Sep 9, 2014
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  6. Domingo

    Domingo Grand Pooh-Bah (4,252) Apr 23, 2005 Colorado
    Pooh-Bah

    I have to assume this probably carries over to beers brewed anywhere.
     
    #6 Domingo, Sep 9, 2014
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  7. TommyTheHat

    TommyTheHat Initiate (0) Jul 30, 2014 Pennsylvania

    Wasn't there just a thread about something similar? Something about Stone coming up with weird beers or adding odd ingredients to corner the market. Dogfish Head also? Wow...plastic and skin? That's creative.

    But hey, I can't worry about it. Ever read about what's on a toothbrush that sits on a bathroom sink? :grimacing:

    Besides. I eat at buffets.
     
    #7 TommyTheHat, Sep 9, 2014
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  8. drtth

    drtth Initiate (0) Nov 25, 2007 Pennsylvania
    In Memoriam

    Basic data appears to have been collected in Germany. Would apparently depend partly on ground water contaminiation by plastics. Coors gets to use the water first so.... :slight_smile:
     
    #8 drtth, Sep 9, 2014
    Last edited: Sep 9, 2014
  9. MNAle

    MNAle Initiate (0) Sep 6, 2011 Minnesota

    I guess I'll avoid German beer, then. Thank goodness I have several local breweries that are run by semi-grownup frat boys getting their water from the Minneapolis municipal system (straight out of the Mississippi River) and dumping ingredients into the tanks from half-used bags that have stood open leaned against the brewery wall for a couple of days, all while they continue to "sample" the product ... :rolling_eyes:
     
    #9 MNAle, Sep 9, 2014
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  10. Domingo

    Domingo Grand Pooh-Bah (4,252) Apr 23, 2005 Colorado
    Pooh-Bah

    My first thoughts, too. Even if you're meticulous, I just don't know if you can prevent some of those things...let alone the places that aren't. I've spent a bit of time in breweries in Germany and here in the states and the overall operations aren't all that different.
     
    #10 Domingo, Sep 9, 2014
  11. TommyTheHat

    TommyTheHat Initiate (0) Jul 30, 2014 Pennsylvania

    It's all killed in the boil!
     
    #11 TommyTheHat, Sep 9, 2014
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  12. JackHorzempa

    JackHorzempa Grand Pooh-Bah (3,375) Dec 15, 2005 Pennsylvania
    Society Pooh-Bah

    Your message doesn't have an emoticon but I am guessing that your post is a joke?

    Boiling will not 'kill' foreign substances like plastic. The boiling will sterilize the plastic but the plastic still remains.

    I don't know about you but I prefer to not drink plastic fibers/fragments/granular materials.

    Cheers!
     
    #12 JackHorzempa, Sep 9, 2014
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  13. RicoBrew

    RicoBrew Initiate (0) Nov 12, 2008 California

    A lot of breweries add PVPP or other polymer-based chemicals to the fermenter while the beer is being chilled in order to remove chill haze causing proteins and polyphenols from the beer (it's a process called "stabilization"). Most of the PVPP is removed during the filtration process, but I'm guessing the itty bitty plastic particles that they're finding might be remnants of the stabilization process using PVPP or other polymer-based products.

    It's all food-grade, so it's not harmful if you consume a little bit of it. I know most smaller, American craft breweries don't use any stabilization products.
     
    #13 RicoBrew, Sep 9, 2014
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  14. KendallKid

    KendallKid Initiate (0) Jun 9, 2014 New York

    There are literally rafts of plastic floating in the oceans....
    Think the fish and birds arent ingesting it ?
    In turn that means we end up ingesting it also..
    Plastic is evil and needs to be stopped
     
    #14 KendallKid, Sep 9, 2014
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  15. TommyTheHat

    TommyTheHat Initiate (0) Jul 30, 2014 Pennsylvania

    :wink:
     
    #15 TommyTheHat, Sep 9, 2014
  16. SirRainboom

    SirRainboom Initiate (0) Jul 27, 2014 Germany

    Could almost make for a hellenistic dogmatist with that one.

    There's lot of stuff in a lot of things. From food to hair products. But does it matter? Mostly not, because the dose is marginal. (unless you eat tons of fish, that may give you mercury poisoning)
     
    #16 SirRainboom, Sep 9, 2014
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  17. MNAle

    MNAle Initiate (0) Sep 6, 2011 Minnesota

    There is a USDA standard for:
    • The amount of animal protein (e.g. insects, rodents) allowed in canned or processed vegetables
    • The amount of bovine fecal matter allowed in fresh milk
    In neither case is that amount zero (whether from certified "organic" farms or not; whether from your local farmer's market or from the mega superstore). You people should visit a "family farm" sometime!
     
    #17 MNAle, Sep 9, 2014
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  18. SirRainboom

    SirRainboom Initiate (0) Jul 27, 2014 Germany

    ^ That, pretty much. And those standards usually also go for everything else that tends to happen up in or on food and is usually tested regularly. And while I can't speak for the U.S. I know that actually contaminated "operations" that produce and sell consumables get a "clearing period" to get their issues sorted out and if they haven't by the deadline they simply get shut down.

    I know someone who actually worked for one of the companies who do these inspections and apparently the standards for most foods are pretty strict. Brewing operations may not have to have the same level/standards of sterility but I still doubt that "contamination" levels would be comparatively high.
     
    #18 SirRainboom, Sep 9, 2014
  19. rlcoffey

    rlcoffey Savant (1,207) Apr 20, 2004 Kentucky

    My uncle owned a dairy. I used to help my cousin do afternoon milkings.

    [Insert shudder icon here]
     
    #19 rlcoffey, Sep 9, 2014
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  20. drtth

    drtth Initiate (0) Nov 25, 2007 Pennsylvania
    In Memoriam

    Been there. Also have worked in a commercial bread bakery. And your point is?
     
    #20 drtth, Sep 9, 2014
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