Singapore’s New Beer Made From Recycled Toilet Water Wins Admirers

The beverage was first introduced at a Water Conference in 2018 and went on sale in Brewerkz stores and supermarkets in April 2022.

Representational Image.

Source : Getty Images

Singapore has launched a new blond ale which is made from recycled sewage water. The alcoholic beverage has been manufactured by the collaboration of the country’s national water agency, PUB, and a local craft brewery Brewerkz.

The beverage was first introduced at a Water Conference in 2018 and went on sale in Brewerkz stores and supermarkets in April 2022.

Earlier, the idea of processing and recycling sewage water was opposed by a whole lot of people. However, now that the world’s fresh water supply is under a lot of stress, people are supporting the idea. According to the World Wildlife Fund, 2.7 billion people face water scarcity once a month on a yearly basis.

World economies like Singapore and Israel have limited freshwater resources and are heavily dependent on the rainfall. Any dryspell which continues for a prolonged period puts Singapore at a risk of water shortage. Thus, they have already assimilated this technology. Cities like London and Los Angeles are also planning to adopt the new technology.  

NEWater which is being used to make NEWBeer is manufactured by disinfecting sewage water by using ultraviolet light. Then the salts and minerals are removed by following a process known as ‘REVERSE OSMOSIS’. This water also goes through microfiltration process to remove bacteria and microscopic particles. The treated water is then put through a process of disinfection that kills the remaining impurities including bacteria and viruses.

Brewerkz’s head brewer Mitch Gribov said “NEWater perfectly suits brewing because it tastes natural. The mineral profile of water plays a key role in chemical reactions during brewing.”

The technology of making beer through recycled sewage isn’t new. Swedish brewer Nya Carnegie Brewery based in Stockholm already collaborated with beer giant Carlsberg and IVL Swedish Environment Research institute to create a pilsner made with recycled toilet water. Canadian brewer, Village Brewery also partnered up with Xylem, a US Water technology firm and researchers from University of Calgary to create their very own ale. 

Although the drink is getting good response, there are some people who are not really interested in trying it out at all.

58-year-old Chew Wei Lian said “I seriously couldn't tell this was made of toilet water," Lian purchased the beer from a local supermarket to try after hearing about it. "I don't mind having it if it was in the fridge. I mean, it tastes just like beer, and I like beer."

Another localite, Grace Chen said “If you don’t tell people it’s made from wastewater, they probably won’t know.”

While there are some people who sidestep from tasting the drink. For instance, 22-year-old Low Yu Chen said “There are many kinds of beers around, if I wanted a beer, I’d pick something made of normal water.”

Still, if you happen to visit Singapore and want to try your hands on NEWBrew then you better be quick as the makers are expecting it to sell out completely by the end of July. And the brewer said that they will first assess the market response and then only they will decide whether they want to manufacture more batches of the beverage or not.