Picture the jar of yeast on your pantry shelf. Perhaps it is from your bread-making phase or an impromptu homemade pizza dinner. AB Mauri’s Calgary-based facility grows yeast from a small starter into hundreds of thousands of kilograms. The products are then shipped to commercial bakeries across Canada, where they are used in bread and bakery products sold in local grocery stores.
Darren Clark, Engineering and Project Manager at AB Mauri, focuses on the energy management behind this big operation.
“I’m a bit of a nerd about this stuff,” says Darren. “I love the science behind it. We have large commercial fermenters to grow yeast at our Calgary plant. For us, sustainability is very important. AB Mauri wants to reduce our energy consumption and be net zero by 2050.”
Darren worked with ERA’s Strategic Energy Management for Industry (SEMI) program to conduct a Facility Readiness Assessment of the plant. Led by Enerva Energy Solutions, the assessment identified the plant’s baseline energy usage and provided a report with potential equipment upgrades. The main culprit was their blowers, which account for 65 per cent of the plant’s electrical load.
Growing yeast requires a lot of air. Blowers blast air into the bottom of each commercial fermenter, allowing it to rise through the mixture. This brings tiny bubbles of oxygen into contact with the yeast cells, speeding up the fermentation process. The Facility Readiness Assessment helped AB Mauri identify the blowers as an upgrade that could save up to 14 per cent in annual electricity costs.
Darren has also participated in group Strategic Energy Management training with SEMI, explaining, “It’s been so valuable to meet other professionals in Alberta who use the same types of equipment. It’s good for networking and for understanding where you fit alongside other companies.”
AB Mauri has recently assembled an energy team to improve the plant’s sustainability efforts. Together, they have been working through energy management training books during weekly meetings. The Calgary plant is aspiring to become a notable example of energy and environmental stewardship in North America. The team is building a solid foundation for the facility’s energy management system and then gradually training staff in energy conservation.
“We’re going to do an energy treasure hunt with employees, where they walk around the facility to look for clues to save energy. I thought it was a little lame when I first heard it in the SEMI course… but now I think it’s a great idea to get people involved!” said Darren.
Quick Facts
- AB Mauri is a global leader in yeast and bakery ingredient products. The company sells yeast under the Fleischmann’s® Yeast brand name.
- The company’s North American headquarters are in St. Louis, Missouri, with four production facilities in the United States (Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Wilsonville, Oregon; Memphis, Tennessee; and Greenville, Texas), two in Canada (LaSalle, Quebec; and Calgary, Alberta) and one in Mexico (Veracruz).
- ERA’s SEMI program provides industrial and manufacturing facilities with funding support, expertise, and training in energy management.
- SEMI is a $70 million program, with funding provided by the Government of Alberta and Natural Resources Canada (NRCan). It is designed to help the province’s industrial and manufacturing sectors increase competitiveness, improve energy efficiency, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.