It is estimated that every year, the brewing industry loses about ú20m through the disappearance of 20,000 of its 50-litre stainless steel or aluminium beer kegs.
BT and Guinness are trialling the use of radio frequency identification tags to help prevent theft or loss. A typical read/write tag is just 30 mm long and about 4 mm thick, enabling it to be fixed directly to the keg.
The RFID tag can be permanently fixed to a keg, and should be capable of surviving impact sustained during normal handling activities, including physical and chemical treatments during cleaning. The tag is therefore maintenance free, does not require a battery and will remain with the container for its lifetime. It can even be recovered, reprogrammed and reused on a new container.
The solution will provide a low-cost way of tracking kegs, and the read-write capability can also be used to provide brewers with valuable information on beer consumption, temperature and age.