Beer is the second most consumed alcoholic beverage in Europe. Alcohol abuse represents a worldwide serious problem with strong impact on both health and society. On the other hand, beneficial effects linked to moderate consumption of beer were widely evidenced, mainly due to the healthy properties of natural polyphenols, especially hydroxybenzoic acids, highly contained in beer.
The interest in the production of low-alcohol beer is increasing worldwide, and a strong impact on the global market could be expected for low-alcohol beer with high sensorial and healthy qualities.
The present project aims to combine a new membrane process for dealcoholization of beer with the phytochemical characterization of original and dealcoholized beers by HPLC-PDA-ESI-MS/MS, to evaluate advantages, disadvantages and possible upgrading of this process to obtain high quality healthy low-alcohol beer.
The worldwide increasing interest in producing low-alcohol beer, up today a secondary product of brewing industry, arises from the high impact these alternative beverages could have on the global market, if keeping in mind for example the increasing legislative interventions restricting or the possible incoming to market in countries where alcohol consumption is forbidden for religious reasons or young people consumers. Further, there is an increasing awareness of consumers in healthy products and beverages.
Efforts are required to produce these alternative beverages maintaining sensorial and healthy qualities.
The proposed study aims to combine a new membrane process for dealcoholization of beer with the phytochemical characterization of original and dealcoholized beer, to evaluate advantages, disadvantages and possible upgrading of this process to obtain high quality healthy low-alcohol beer.