Liverpool Hope University
Chocolate & candy
Dessert
Brewer's Brownies
UNITED KINGDOM - 2020 The Brewer’s Brownie is a vegan chocolate brownie that is fortified with brewer’s spent grain (BSG).
BSG is a by-product of the brewing industry, for every litre of beer produced, 200g of BSG is wasted, sent to landfill or used for animal feed (Happel, Bolwig and Mark, 2017). Food waste is a worldwide problem, around 1.6 billion tonnes of food is wasted or lost annually with an estimated cost of around 2.6 trillion US dollars. The amount of food produced, which is then wasted each year contributes to environmental issues such as greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity loss and pesticide exposure (Jain et al, 2018). As a result, innovation and product development in the food industry is required to combat food waste. BSG is a versatile ingredient that can be utilised as a way to combat food waste. For example, Regrained in the USA are currently producing a spent grain flour that is used to create products such as savoury snacks, pasta, pizza and cereal bars (Watrous, 2019). In addition to providing sustainable and environmental benefits, BSG may contain a high-quality nutritional profile; BSG can provide a high fibre content, along with good quality proteins and phenolic antioxidants, all of which may contribute to a healthy digestive tract. Furthermore, BSG could provide a source of xylo-oligosaccharides which are indigestible by human enzymes but are useful as a prebiotic for beneficial bacteria such as Bifidobacterium. Lignin which is encased within the cell wall may provide antioxidant benefits and impact positively in the mouth feel of products. However, the composition of BSG may negatively impact the taste of a product due to an increase in perceived bitterness (Wilhelmson et al, 2017). To disguise the potential bitterness of the BSG in the brewer’s brownie, a high sugar content along with orange zest was added to the product. This may also increase desirable sensory attributes such as taste, flavour and aroma.
