Koskenkorva plant sets another record in barley use
Over the course of 2016 Altia’s Koskenkorva plant used a total of 192.2 million kilogrammes of Finnish barley, more than ever before in the plant’s history.
This was the third consecutive year that the Koskenkorva plant used a record amount of barley. Growth relative to the previous year was 1.5 million kilos.
One way of putting this colossal figure of 192 million kilos into perspective is by imagining 17 trucks full of barley delivered to the Koskenkorva plant every weekday of the year. This was enough barley to keep the plant’s processes running 24/7, almost every day of the year.
Finnish barley is processed at the Koskenkorva plant to yield a range of refined goods. In absolute terms, the largest amount of product manufactured in 2016 was native starch, 57,500 tonnes. Native starch has many uses, it is used for example as a binding agent in the paper and cardboard industries, and as a raw material in the brewing industry and food industry.
Part of the starch contained in the barley grains is refined to ethanol at the plant through fermentation and distillation processes. A total of 22,556 tonnes of ethanol were distilled in 2016. Koskenkorva’s ethanol is a raw ingredient with many uses, including at Altia’s Rajamäki factory, where it is refined to make various alcoholic drinks.
The carbon dioxide stored in the barley grains is captured by the fermentation processes at the Koskenkorva plant. From there it is delivered to Altia’s partners for meeting the needs of their own customers. The other substances contained in the barley grains, such as valuable plant proteins and fibre, are used as raw materials in the production of animal feed.
Before actual processing begins, the outer husk of the barley grains is removed. The husk is burned as fuel in Altia’s own bioenergy power plant at Koskenkorva. In 2016, the Koskenkorva plant area achieved 56 % self-sufficiency in steam generation. Thanks to the renewable fuel, the Koskenkorva plant has reduced its carbon dioxide emissions by 42 % over two years (from 2014–2016).
The plant’s newest innovation related to barley processing is to use the ash produced in the bioenergy power plant as fertilizer. The nutrients in the ash are thereby returned to the earth, preparing the ground for a fresh barley crop.
More information: www.altiaindustrial.com