Insight

As the world’s largest food and beverage company, Nestlé is committed to preserving resources for future generations by: 

• Reducing water across its operations 
• Using sustainably managed and renewable resources 
• Achieving its zero-waste goal

A Nestlé milk production plant in southeastern Brazil challenged its suppliers to develop improvement projects that would deliver energy savings and reduce water consumption and CO2 emissions. In particular, the plant was looking for an economically viable way to reuse the condensate organic water (COW) stream generated by the production of powdered milk. Nalco Water presented a plan that was approved, implemented and delivered sustainability savings within six months.

Innovation

Nalco Water conducted studies and prepared a water map to identify potential uses for COW water recovery. A work plan followed, which led to the recommendation that the COW water be used as cooling tower make-up.

The solution required a novel approach: creating and installing customized pretreatment and heat recovery systems along with 3D TRASAR™ monitoring and control technology. This had a  considerable impact on the plant, reducing costs as well as water and energy use, further supporting Nestlé’s ambitious sustainability goals.