The 90th anniversary of the Scandinavian School of Brewing

The Scandinavian School of Brewing in Denmark has trained master brewers for 90 years. Since 1925, a total of 726 master brewers have graduated from the school. Finnish graduates number 51, of whom 11 are women and 40 men.

The Scandinavian School of Brewing is the closest educational institution where Finns can study to become master brewers. Before the school was established, Finns who wanted to earn this highly respected diploma studied in Germany. In addition to Denmark, educational institutions in countries such as Germany and the United States now also offer master brewer programmes. “Master brewer” is a protected title – brewers who do not have this diploma are typically referred to as brewmasters.

Member companies of the Federation of the Brewing and Soft Drinks Industry employ many master brewers who have completed their degrees at either the Scandinavian School of Brewing or other institutions. A master brewer is responsible for the brewing process from recipe development all the way to the final product. To develop the quality of Finnish beer and brewery production processes, it is vital for our breweries to have master brewers.

“Students in the master brewer programme learn the requirements that the product sets on the ingredients, recipe development, brewing process and processing. They also learn secrets of the trade concerning other products commonly made at breweries. They gain a comprehensive view of how beer is made, from field to glass,” says Pia Hortling, Master Brewer, Product Development and Purchasing Director at Olvi plc, and the representative of the Federation of the Brewing and Soft Drinks Industry on the Board of the Scandinavian School of Brewing.

The programme includes 16 weeks of on-campus teaching and 18 weeks of training in industry. Most of the students are from the Nordic countries, but the school welcomes students from around the world. In addition to the master brewer diploma, the school also provides a range of courses on beer and soft drinks production, along with individually tailored courses.

The Scandinavian School of Brewing is a private institution owned by the brewers’ associations of Denmark, Finland, Sweden and Norway. The Finnish Federation of the Brewing and Soft Drinks Industry became one of the owners in 1993. The Scandinavian School of Brewing works in close cooperation with the University of Copenhagen.

Additional information:

Scandinavian School of Brewing
Director Gitte Gross, tel. +45 21 60 68 06

Representative of the Federation of the Brewing and Soft Drinks Industry on the Board of the Scandinavian School of Brewing
Product Development and Purchasing Director Pia Hortling, Olvi, tel. +358 (0)17 838 5302

Federation of the Brewing and Soft Drinks Industry
Managing Director Elina Ussa, tel. +358 (0)45 269 7711
Communications Manager Outi Heikkinen, tel. +358 (0)50 370 8677

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