Is there formaldehyde in beer?

Is there formaldehyde in beer?


On a talk-radio show this morning a discussion was taking place about a process where O2 was being added to alcohol drinks in order to produce a lighter hangover.

One caller made a statement that large commercial breweries (AB, Miller, Coors) add formaldehyde to their batches. The reason being that since these brews are top-fermented, they needed a reactive to consume the yeast sediments before filtration.

Most home/craft beers are bottom-fermented (meaning the yeast settles to the bottom of the batch and must be filtered).

My question - specifically to brewers or those with experience is
A) is this true?
B) Should it be something to be concerned about?

Surely a tiny amount won't react with typical physiology but given that other additives and food substances (sic- Aspertame) introduce formaldehyde to the body in other ways, are we consuming our way into early preservation?

discuss

From a quick search on the matter:

The formaldehyde content in Chinese beer is lower than the standard of the World Health Organization, thus Chinese beer is safe to drink, said a report released by China's quality watchdog Friday.

The State Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (SAQSIQ) spot-checked 157 products from 136 domestic beer enterprises and 64 beer products imported from more than 10 countries, as a concrete action in response to recent media reports alleging that Chinese beer contains high formaldehyde contents.

The report noted that one liter of the imported beer contained 0.10 to 0.61 milligrams of formaldehyde on average.

english.peopledaily.com.cn...

So it would seem that there is formaldehyde in most beers, according to China. However, as I look at my pack of cigarettes, I see formaldehyde listed as .07-.2mg. That means that some beer has about 3 times as much in a liter as one cigarette, or 1 can of beer would be the same as one cigarette. Interesting stuff, but that's just one study.

Is there formaldehyde in beer?

i should friekin hope not, I'm smashing one right now!

And beside if it killed me, I wouldn't be able to buy more... if there was anything in my beer it would br crack coc aine to keep me coming back for more!

Lord help me guys

Tax me to death - I'll scrounge

Monitor my movements - I'll hide

but F with my beer and IT'S WAR!!!!

WARNING: ingest no tapper beer unless its the high grade stuff!!!!!!!!

nasty hangovers guaranteed!!!!!!

I never would have thought formaldyahyde was in beer..what purpose does it serve in beer? i wonder if samuel adams natural beer is lying
as far as i do know..formaldyahide is in armor all(stuff you clean yur car interior with) and in car window adhesive.

reply to post by ziggy1706


note to self.... stop licking the inside of my registration sticker to make it stick....

Most light beers, or beer with lower alcohol levels have formeldahyde in them. The formeldahyde stops the fermentation process. I know Coors uses formeldahyde to stop the fermentation and alcohol level in Coors Light. I have heard this is why certain light beers give you worse headaches than higher alcohol beers.

Formaldehyde is a chemical used in enbalming. Or however you spell it. It is a major ingredient in any pickle jar containing brains and organs.

Originally posted by ziggy1706
I never would have thought formaldyahyde was in beer..what purpose does it serve in beer?

As per what's quoted from original post:

The reason being that since these brews are top-fermented, they needed a reactive to consume the yeast sediments before filtration.

I certainly hope they aren't adding formaldehyde to our beers, because I would have enough in me to be legally dead (and embalmed) lol.

Whut Whut!?!

I didn't really know much about this Formaldehyde, other than its name sounds like its totally hazardous and that it surely cant be good to consume for the Human body!!

Wikipedia says this about Formaldehyde...

Formaldehyde is an organic compound with the formula CH2O. In 2005, annual world production of formaldehyde was estimated to be 21 million tonnes (46 billion pounds). In view of its widespread use, toxicity and volatility, exposure to formaldehyde is a significant consideration for human health.

But you know guys, I really enjoy that Japanese beer Sapporo and if you say over there in China they've proven to produce less of this in their beers, then by-god, Im gonna drink it even more !! aww wait, China and Japan are not the same... oh well whatever, enjoy your freakin' beers people!!

As a former home brewer who has studied the chemistry in detail I can say with certainty that top or bottom fermentation has nothing to do with hangovers.

Its nutrient depletion and dehydration that cause hangovers.

As for formaldehyde in beer. I have never read anything about that in any brewing literature. Yeast precipitates out at the end of the fermentation cycle and to clear the beer fining's like egg whites or Irish moss are used for clarity.

Generally speaking big brewers brew their beers to a higher gravity to make say a 10% alcohol beer then cut it with water to their specific gravity...usually around 5%.

The big additions monster brewers use are rice, corn and sugar in place of the more expensive malts.

If you are concerned about it drink German beers instead...they have a strictly enforced beer purity law dating back to the 1500's that restrict beer to water...malt...hops and yeast.

[edit on 3/4/2010 by iMacFanatic]

Solution?

Brew your own Mead

Fermenting beer yeast produces a spectrum of byproducts other than just ethanol. You get a variety of aldehydes and higher-order alcohols, and some methanol. It's dependent on the yeast strain and what they fermented it with.

On top of that, your liver will convert any methanol traces in the beer to formaldehyde on the first pass, so it's got that going for it.

But in most cases, it's no more than a trace, especially in beer. If you're making blockade, you need to discard the lighter and heavier fractions to get rid of the methanol and fusel oils, because the yeast used to make whiskey (and the sugars available to it from corn mash) can generate enough aldehydes and methanol to be a problem.

Is there PROOF in THIS PUDDING?

hint - page-search for "formaldehyde"

I bring this up because the owner's of Budweiser (InBev) are now poised to buy Negro Modelo i.e. Corona


Support your local brewers!



[edit on 11-3-2010 by TXRabbit]

Part of the problem with formaldehyde in beer is that in the U.S., at least, manufacturers are not required to say if it is there or not.

This is part of the problem with non-organic maple syrup as well. Certain levels of formaldehyde are allowed to be present, along with lead contamination. That's why I only buy the more expensive organic maple syrup.

The Natural Food Encyclopedia gives full information on pure food sources, and my information on the contamination of non-organic maple syrup with formaldehyde comes from that book. Here is the author's website:

www.rwood.com...

Obviously nobody has seen Good Morning Vietnam

The formaldehyde in beer issue was discussed over beers at Jimmy Wah's Bar.

Wah: Bamiah Ba beer, best beer in Vietnam.
Garlick: Bamiah Ba beer, only beer in Vietnam
Cronauer: Why is it burning my throat?
Garlick: They put formaldehyde in the beer to improve the taste.
Cronauer: *Spews his beer all over the table*
Garlick: You'll get used to it.

In Thailand there is a famous beer called Klosters beer which has huge amounts of formaldehyde in it. You can taste it and can definitely smell it. My friends and I have drank gallons of the stuff and are okay. Last time I was there (2007) I didn't see it being sold so perhaps they have been put out of business.

The funny thing about Kloster beer is that there is no quality assurance in its production, so one beer can be very weak and the next can give you a wicked buzz.