Humans have been brewing beer for thousands of years, but it wasn’t until 1935 that the first beer cans hit the shelves. Fast forward to today, and the beer can has become a staple, punctuating get-togethers galore, from barbeques to baseball games.
But between icy-cold sips, have you ever wondered how beer gets put in the can?
That’s where co-packers come in, but it’s not often done by hand. The modern beer canning process is now ultra-efficient through innovations in machinery and automation. Wildpack Beverage provides canning services for middle-market beverage brands, which is why we’ll be walking you through this process step by step as we explore the journey from empty to full—and, thanks to canned beer-drinkers like you, back to empty again.
Step 1: Loading the Machine with Empty Cans
The canning process begins with row upon row of empty cans. Depending on the canning machine that a brewery or copacker uses, the cans will be fed into the machine in one of two ways:
- Automatic canning – With a high-output automated canning system, the user will operate a machine called a depalletizer to load the cans in. The depalletizer removes the empty cans from their pallets and feeds them onto a conveyor belt in groups.
- Manual canning – For manual or semi-automatic canning systems, the operator will have to feed each empty can into the machine by hand.
No matter how the beer canning line operates, the empty cans arrive on the conveyor belt without tops. At this stage, they are nothing more than tall aluminum cups waiting to be filled.
In some cases, copackers will use pre-printed cans to skip the penultimate labeling step. However, most of the time, you’ll see naked aluminum cans rushing down the conveyor belts, with labels added toward the end of the process.
Step 2: Rinsing the Interiors of the Cans
Whether the cans are brand new or recycled, they’re always thoroughly washed ahead of filling.
In this step, the cans flow down a conveyor belt into the chute of a twist rinser, which looks like a rollercoaster for cans. As the cans travel down the chute, the “track” flips the cans upside down before blasting them with sanitizing water. After cleaning, the twist rinser returns the cans to their upright position.
Step 3: Purging the Oxygen
Because the cans are open to the elements, they’re full of oxygen (as well as some residual water). To ensure that no oxygen is present in the final product, carbon dioxide (CO2) is pumped into each can ahead of filling. Tubes of CO2 come down from above, forcing all of the oxygen out of the empty aluminum sleeves.
This step is critical, as oxygen can shorten shelf life and negatively impact the beer’s flavor. The more time beer spends exposed to oxygen, the higher the chance it will taste stale or muted.
Step 4: Filling the Cans
After the oxygen purging, the cans travel down the canning line for filling. A Teflon tube descends from above, pouring the glorious beer that’s been brewing into each can.
Depending on the size and capacity of the filling station, a variable number of cans will be filled at a time. The more filler heads in the machine, the more cans it can fill at once.
Because some spillage can occur when the now-full vessels travel down the conveyor belts, most machines will pour slightly more than the required amount into each can.
Filling stations can be calibrated to fill a variety of can sizes. At Wildpack, we offer end-to-end capabilities and fast turnarounds to fill:
- 12oz. standard cans
- 12oz. sleek cans
- 16oz. standard cans
- Other sizes upon request
Step 5: Adding the Ends
Here, the top part of the can—called the end—comes into play. The end (or lid) is dispensed from above, landing with a clang on top of the open-air cans.
In some setups, a vacuum sealing machine will spray nitrogen into the can right as the lid comes down, expelling any remaining oxygen from the can.
Step 6: Seaming the Cans
Next, a machine called a seamer fastens the end to the rest of the can. Each full can is lifted individually into the seamer to be double seamed. This process involves two “seaming rollers” that rotate around the can one after the other, crimping the end and the can together.
Sometimes, steps five and six occur more or less simultaneously, as some seamers drop the end right before seaming.
Step 7: Rinsing and Drying the Exteriors of the Cans
As some amount of spillage is all but guaranteed as the cans course down the conveyor belts, their outsides are now rinsed to keep them from becoming sticky.
Following the final wash, cans are carried into a blow-off tunnel. This quick burst of air dries any excess moisture, facilitating the application of labels.
Step 8: Quality Control
At this stage, the filled cans are checked to ensure they’ve been filled to the appropriate level. If any underfilled cans (referred to as “low fills”) are identified, they’ll be removed from the conveyor belt. The remaining cans will continue down the line to the labeling stage.
Step 9: Labeling
If the cans weren’t printed on before the canning process, they’ll now be labeled. There are two ways to apply labels:
- Pressure-sensitive labels – Pre-printed labels made of paper or vinyl are loaded into a wrap labeling system ahead of time, then lowered onto every can as they enter the conveyor belt. The wrap belt spins the can to ensure the label is applied evenly.
- Shrink sleeve labels – With shrink sleeve labeling, each can will be fitted with a sleeve. The can will then be exposed to heat, and the sleeve will shrink, hugging the can tightly. Find out why shrink sleeve labels are better for labeling.
The cans will also be stamped with a “brewed on” date or expiry date during the labeling process.
Step 10: Packaging the Cans for Sale
Finally, the beers are ready to be packaged and dispersed to supermarkets, corner stores, and pubs around the country. Beer cans reach the end of the conveyor belts and are generally packaged in one of four ways:
- Plastic rings – Some brewers use single-use soft plastic rings for their 4, 6, and 8 packs. In general, plastic rings are applied automatically by a packaging machine.
- PakTech carriers – These reusable carriers are made of hard, opaque plastic. They keep the can lids clean and are recyclable. They’re used mostly for 4, 6, and 8 packs.
- Cardboard boxes – For packs of 12, 15, 24, 30, and 36, beer cans are usually loaded manually into branded boxes.
- Case trays – When companies need to transport cans that won’t be resold, they can load them into case trays (also called flats). Case trays typically hold 24 beers, though bigger flats exist.
Once packaged, these beer cans are ready for their final journey into your fridge at home.
Frequently Asked Questions
In many ways, the beer canning process feels like magic. An empty can goes in, and a full one comes out the other end. With this manner of hands-off canning, it’s natural for questions to come up. Here are some of the most common questions we hear around the beer canning process.
Are All Canning Setups the Same?
The beauty of automated canning lines is that they’re customizable. In fact, most canning systems will probably be slightly different. Depending on a brewery’s needs, upgrades and aftermarket additions can be made to increase capacity, accommodate different vessels, and so much more.
How Many Cans Can a Canning Machine Fill Per Hour?
Most canning machines actually measure their output in CPM, or “cans per minute.” At the lower end of the spectrum, you’ll find single-head machines that fill around seven beers per minute. High-output systems can pump out over 100 cans each minute.
Some quick math will show you that canning lines can produce anywhere from 400 to 6,000 cans per hour—assuming that there are enough empty cans to fill with beer. Some high-powered industrial lines can output as many as 72,000 cans per hour!
Why Use Cans for Beer?
While the process for canning beer has changed over the last nine decades, the benefits of selling canned beer remain the same. Cans are the optimal vessel for storing and transporting beer, as they are:
- Recyclable
- Lightweight
- Easy to chill
- Portable
- Environmentally friendly (due to lower greenhouse gas emissions)
Additionally, aluminum cans allow for 360° brewery branding. No space needs to be left uncovered.
I’m a Budding Brewer. Should I Buy a Canning Line?
If you’re a small or middle-market brewery looking to can your beer, you might be tempted to buy a canning machine. But with the steep initial costs of canning equipment, you may be better off co-packing your beer. By partnering with a canning facility, you can share your beer with the world as soon as possible, without having to purchase a large-scale canning system out of pocket.
Leave Your Beer Canning to the Experts: Wildpack
No one knows the beer canning process better than our expert team. At Wildpack, we’ve sleeved, packaged, and canned millions of beverages since 2017.
Whether you need your cans filled or labeled, our state-of-the-art canning line can deliver. Get in touch with us today for a quote.
Sources:
HISTORY. First canned beer goes on sale. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/first-canned-beer-goes-on-sale
Brewing Industry Guide. Managing Dissolved Oxygen Levels. https://brewingindustryguide.com/managing-dissolved-oxygen-levels/
Asian Beer Network. Small Scale Canning for Breweries. https://www.asianbeernetwork.com/small-scale-canning-for-breweries/
