Integrating the malt value chain
Certain countries are structurally in deficit since they consume beer yet produce little or no barley. That is true of China, which in 2013 consumed approximately 4 million tons of malting barley, yet produced less than 1 million tons. Local policies do not encourage barley production and encourage production of rice, corn, and wheat. Therefore the deficit can only increase, given the growing demand — estimated at 6 million tons 10 years from now.
This situation can also be observed, on a smaller scale, in other countries such as Vietnam, where barley consumption is expected to increase from approximately 500,000 tons today to nearly 1 million tons in 10 years, with local production all but non-existent due to agronomic conditions.
Finally, among the emerging countries, other markets are experiencing strong growth in beer consumption, but setting up a malting-barley production industry there is problematic. Such is the case with India, where barley production and consumption zones are very far removed from one another and where logistics remain insufficient. It is also the case in certain African countries where the growing structures (small farms, subsistence agriculture) do not facilitate production and storage of a technical crop such as malting barley.
At the opposite extreme, other countries are structurally in surplus, producing more barley than they consume. That is true of Australia (with a production of 3.5 Mt of malting barley compared to only 1 million tons being processed) and the European Union (which produces approximately 11 Mt of malting barley yet processes only 9 million tons).
Russia and Ukraine are another case. These two countries are among the world’s largest barley producers, but climatic conditions (drought in Spring and rain at harvest time) are very unfavorable to malting barley. The result is that the zone is an exporter of barley as fodder but an importer of malting barley.
Imbalances can also exist within a single geographical zone. In North America, for example, production zones continue to move toward the Northwest, whereas beer consumption zones are concentrated with population — that is, in the southern, eastern, and western parts of the continent. Therefore the zone is self-sufficient for malting barley, but there are large internal flows, for example from Canada toward Mexico.
A complete approach to malting barley procurement must take into account these six key areas and deploy pragmatic, multi-faceted solutions keyed to situations and customer needs in each region.
Several hundred varieties of malting barley exist around the world, suited to local conditions.
Brewing-type winter barleys (two-row/six-row) are grown mainly in Western Europe (GB/F), with a French preference for producing six-row winter malting barleys.
Malt is a natural food product that results from the transformation of a cereal grain. Barley is the grain most used today, but wheat can also be used for making "white" beers. Malt is the main ingredient used in brewing beer, along with water, hops, and yeast.
In a worldwide context in which malting barley is becoming scarce, geographical imbalances and mismatches between cereal-grain production zones and beer consumption zones are increasing. Securing supplies of raw materials now requires skills in six key areas. To deal with this complex situation, Malteurop deploys different organizational and procurement-chain management models.
Malteurop conducts a research and development policy aimed at introducing innovations into the barley-malt-beer value chain. It concerns primarily control over raw materials – barley and malt – and improving industrial processes at malting plants.
To adapt as well as possible to the expectations and imperatives of brewers and respond to the varied demands of a diversified international clientele, Malteurop offers several modes of commercial collaboration, as well as consulting, engineering, and training services.
