AMES, Iowa — The Distillers Grains Technology Council, administered at Iowa State University, will cover the latest research for industries that produce and use distillers grains at its 25th annual symposium, Oct. 25-26, 2021, in Louisville, Kentucky.
The symposium will provide state-of-the-art information and will discuss key issues related to distillers grains marketing and merchandising, animal nutrition and diseases, processing technologies and government regulations.
“Our goal is to bring together industry leaders to discuss the technologies, ingredients, processes and approaches to utilizing cereal grains for fermentation into alcohol, and on the properties, value and uses of the nonfermentable co-products, known as distillers grains,” said Kurt Rosentrater, executive director of the Distillers Grains Technology Council and an associate professor of agricultural and biosystems engineering at Iowa State.
Distillers grains products have historically been used primarily for livestock and poultry feed, but new technologies are being developed to expand their use into other markets such as cellulosic ethanol, biochemicals, pet foods, fish foods and other value-added materials.
Highlights of this year’s symposium include:
- Evolving processes and new types of distillers proteins
- Using distillers proteins in pet foods and aquaculture feeds
- A shark-tank style competition to find the best solution for using stillage and spent grains from small distilleries
The event begins Oct. 25, at the downtown Marriott Hotel, with pre-meeting activities that include a bourbon and bridles tour at the historic Churchill Downs in Louisville, Sunday, Oct. 24. Presentations begin Oct. 25 at 8 a.m., and the symposium ends late afternoon, Oct. 26. A virtual option is available for those who can’t attend in person.
The council was founded in 1945 as the Distillers Feed Research Council to assist the beverage distilling industry in developing uses for their non-fermentable waste materials. The nonprofit also serves other related industries, businesses and affiliated organizations. In 2013, the DGTC relocated to Iowa State University in the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering.
Find more details and registration information at https://distillersgrains.org/symposium/