Quality Assurance

'Quality Assurance refers to the process if developing standard operating procedures for avoiding general quality problems . In the brewing industry, this includes avoiding off-flavors from contamination, dissolved oxygen in beer, fermentation and ingredient issues, etc.

Avoiding Cross Contamintation

While most microorganisms cannot survive in beer due to the hops, low pH, alcohol content, and shortage of nutrients, certain species are considered to be beer spoilage organisms due to their ability to form biofilms and survive in beer and make a potential impact on the beer's flavor by producing acidity, phenols, and turbidity with just a few surviving cells. These species include Brettanomyces species, numerous Lactobacillus species, Pediococcus damnosus, Pectinatus cerevisiphilus, P. frisingensis, Megasphaera cerevisiae, Selenomonas lactifex, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. diastaticus. Other species of microbes do not grow in beer but can become contaminants earlier on in the brewing process (for example during kettle souring). These species include enterobacteria such as Clostridium species, Obesumbacterium proteus and Rahnella aquatilis, and wild Saccharomyces that might not be able to grow in finished beer. Other species are considered "indicator" species because they do not directly cause spoilage of beer, but indicate that there is a hygiene problem. These include Acetobacter, Gluconobacter, and Klebsiella species, as well as aerobic yeasts. Biofilm forming spoilage organisms include a much wider range in beer tap systems due to the availability of oxygen and higher temperatures at certain points in the tap system. Of particular concern here is the ability of E. coli serotype O157:H7 to survive in tap systems, which has had a couple of documented occurrences in contaminated apple cider

Sources for contamination can occur as "primary" contaminations (yeast pitching, and brewhouse related contaminations), or as "secondary" contaminations (packaging and cellaring), as well as in tap systems. They are usually not sudden occurrences, but a result of continued growth of microorganisms in a problem area. Historically, re-pitching yeast was often a source of contamination, however, more recently this has become less of a source for contaminations due to better education and techniques. Typical sources for contamination also include unclean equipment such as thermometers, manometers, valves, dead ends, gas pipes, leaks in any part of the system (especially at heat exchangers), wort aeration equipment, and even worn floor surfaces. More than half of documented contaminations come from the packaging system. These are typically the sealer (35%), the filler (25%), the bottle inspector (10%), dripping water from the bottle washer (10%), and the environment close to the filler and sealer (10%). In regards to the environment as a source of contamination, this has been found to be from airborne contaminants near the filler and crowner. The higher the humidity and the more airflow, the more chances of airborne contamination. In tap systems at taverns, 'one-way' valves that are attached to kegs have been found to be a source of contamination, as well as the dispensing line .

Many microorganisms can form biofilms which is defined as a community of cells of one or more species that are attached to each other and/or a surface and are embedded in a matrix of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), including polysaccharides and proteins, similar to a pellicle. Biofilms allow microbes to survive less vigorous cleaning and sanitizing regiments and chemicals and has become a concern in the food industry as well as in the brewing and wine making industries .

Bacteria and yeast form a biofilm in two stages, which are determined by a number of variables. In the first stage, the microbes remain in their "planktonic" form (floating around in the liquid), but they begin to adhere on surfaces and to each other as those surfaces. Other species of microbes can also be adhered to during this phase. The second stage is where the microbes start producing exopolysaccharides (EPS) which helps them bind together in a matrix, along with any available proteins and exopolymers produced by the bacteria. A large portion of biofilms is actually water (80-80%) as this allows the microbes to remove waste and consume nutrients. This matrix helps the microbes resist antibiotics, UV radiation, and cleaning chemicals. Gene exchange also occurs more frequently. At the end of this second stage, the microbes become attached to surfaces in such a way that is permanent without the use of cleaning chemicals. This is known as the microbe's "sessile" form (immobile). Bacteria in this form continue to multiply, and upon maturation of the biofilm, eventually, planktonic cells begin to be produced and released from the biofilm to find new homes. They also display different phenotypes, which might contribute to their ability to resist cleaning chemicals. Rough or scratched surfaces are more prone to biofilm formation due to the higher surface area. Hydrophobic surfaces, such as Teflon and other plastics) are more prone to biofilm formation than hydrophilic surfaces (glass and metal) . Biofilms can form within 2-4 days .

The efficacy of different chemicals to kill microbes within a biofilm isn't widely studied in the brewing or wine industries, partly because testing procedures are laborious and difficult to standardize. One study found that alcohol-based disinfectants (ethanol and isopropyl alcohol) were effective at killing microbes within a biofilm, and peracetic acid disinfectants were not as effective. A higher concentration of peracetic acid (from 0.25% to 1% of products containing 4-15%) was required to be more effective than lower concentrations. However, these disinfectants did not kill all of the cells without a cleaning regiment first. Yeast biofilms, in general, are more susceptible to cleaning chemicals than bacteria biofilms .

See also:

• Joe Idoni's heat sanitation based SOP.
• MTF thread on brewing mixed fermentation beers with clean beers in a commercial brewery.
• Another MTF thread on sanitation.

See Also

Additional Articles on MTF Wiki

• Mixed Fermentation