Implementación de una técnica de producción más limpia en el proceso de elaboración de vino de frutas, a través de la sustitución de la tecnología de pasteurización tradicional.

Abstract

Cleaner production (CP) consists of implementing holistic and continuous strategies to reduce relevant risks to people, the environment and its surroundings in a preventive and integrated manner to production processes, products and services as objectives of a value chain.

In Ecuador, the need to develop an environmentally friendly industry, conscious and that generates environmental value, is described since the constitution of the republic, being the first country to grant nature and the environment recognizable and legally established rights, which is why through the Ministry of Environment (MAE) and institutions attached to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) have developed environmental policies as an incentive to the national industry for the implementation of cleaner production strategies.

By 2019 only 15% of the national food and beverage industry has implemented and maintains clear environmental policies to mitigate environmental impacts and correct deviations, hence the need to encourage the development of CP plans and strategies. For Industrias Licoreras Asociadas S.A. environmental care is one of the main axes of development, with a vision of growth to 2025, the production of fruit wine represents 40% of its net profits and the third most commercial product of its portfolio, therefore, the optimization of the process, Therefore, the optimization of the process, leveraged on the implementation of a cleaner production strategy by replacing the pasteurization technology with heat exchange by direct ozone injection, represented a 105% increase in productivity, a 39% reduction in operating costs, and a reduction of the cycle time per unit by 70 seconds, which allows processing the same amount of fruit wine in half the time of an 8-hour workday.

In addition, the change in technology made it possible to eliminate dependence on fossil fuels for the pasteurization operation and replace it with electrical energy, which in Ecuador comes from renewable sources, the reduction of 99% of water consumption for the process and therefore the elimination of discharge water (effluent) as waste, which together reduced the carbon footprint of fruit wine production from 3.22 tons of CO2 equivalent per year to just under 0.1 tons by 2021.

Furthermore, the reduction in atmospheric emissions and particulate matter, together with the aforementioned results, will enable ILA S.A. to be certified as a PUNTO VERTO company. to be certified as a GREEN DOT company, an endorsement granted by the MAE to public and private companies committed to the environment, with the corresponding tax and tariff benefits as well as the endorsement and marketing recognition as one of the companies in the food sector, pioneer in the country in offering an environmentally friendly low-alcoholic beverage with unique flavors and sensory experiences, thus aligning itself with the fundamental principle of Cleaner Production and the Sustainable Development Goals.