Exploring the Feasibility of Growing Malt Barley in Pennsylvania

Introduction

Barley is a rather complex specialty grain. In addition to livestock feed, it can be used to make both beer and other drinks such as whiskey or malted shakes. Brewers and distillers commonly use two types of barley to make alcohol, two-row and six-row varieties. These distinctions are made based on the barley's morphology. Two-row barley kernels are more symmetrical in comparison to the six-row barley, which has a symmetrical center, but has two lateral rows of kernels that are thinner and shorter. In Pennsylvania, it is better to grow six-row barley due to environmental conditions.

After harvest, the barley goes through a malting process. Malted barley, typically of the Maris Otter, Pipkin, and Halcyon varieties, is barley that has been dried, soaked in water to force germination, and then dried again to stop the germination process. Malting is a necessary step because the germination creates enzymes which are required to convert the starch to fermentable sugar and also brings the grain to it highest point of soluble starch content. Malting produces an enzyme that converts the grain's starches into various sugars such as the monosaccharide glucose, the disaccharide maltose, and various other trisaccharides and maltodextrines. The malting process also promotes proteases, protein-breaking enzymes that allow yeast to work with the residual protein in the beer-making process.

Barley in Pennsylvania

Barley is an annual grass that grows during cooler seasons. It can grow in warm to hot climates, but this is not ideal because the plant becomes more susceptible to various diseases and pathogens in warmer climates. In Pennsylvania, winter barley should be seeded from September to November and spring barley seeded between March and April. For more information on seeding barley in Pennsylvania, go to Malting Barley in Pennsylvania. Barley requires more alkaline pH soils (between 6.0 and 8.5), which can be challenging for many Pennsylvania farmers, as the majority of Pennsylvania soil is more acidic. Farmers can also use barley as a cover crop, which can help maintain soil quality and fertility. Other benefits of growing barley are that it is great for weed control, will protect soils from erosion, has the ability to capture nitrogen, has pest management qualities, and is capable of protecting other crops from wind damage. For more information on the benefits of growing barley, consult the USDA Plant Guide for Barley.

Market Overview of Malt Barley in Pennsylvania and Surrounding States

As craft beer production has grown, so has the demand for locally sourced malt barley. In Pennsylvania alone between 2011 and 2016, the number of craft breweries increased from 85 to 205—greater than a 141 percent increase. State Craft Beer Sales & Production Statistics, 2023 indicated the impact craft breweries are having on the malt barley market.

Pennsylvania

• 205 craft breweries
• Ranks 7th in the nation for number of craft breweries in existence.
• Ranks 1st in the nation for amount of craft beer produced per year at 3,905,620 barrels.

New York

• 269 craft breweries
• Ranks 4th in the nation for number of craft breweries in existence.
• Ranks 9th in the nation for amount of craft beer produced per year at 1,000,785 barrels.

Maryland

• 65 craft breweries
• Ranks 25th in the nation for number of craft breweries in existence.
• Ranks 20th in the nation for amount of craft beer produced per year at 282,593 barrels.

Delaware

• 19 craft breweries
• Ranks 44th in the nation for number of craft breweries in existence.
• Ranks 23rd in the nation for amount of craft beer produced per year at 249,733 barrels.

Ohio

• 177 craft breweries
• Ranks 12th in the nation for number of craft breweries in existence.
• Ranks 4th in the nation for amount of craft beer produced per year at 1,373,041 barrels.

New Jersey

• 82 craft breweries
• Ranks 19th in the nation for number of craft breweries in existence.
• Ranks 31st in the nation for amount of craft beer produced per year at 111,416 barrels.

From Grain to Glass

Partnering

Before seeding, farmers considering growing barley should make contracts with malting houses, local breweries, distilleries, and homebrew shops. Many breweries plan their annual operations far in advance, and it may be difficult to market the crop post-harvest if pre-growing agreements do not exist. Fortunately, in Pennsylvania, barley is a popular grain used for baked goods as well.

Malt Houses

After harvesting the barley, it needs to go to a malt house for malting. Fortunately, facilities exist in Pennsylvania, but there are only a few. You can find in the appendix a list of all the existing Pennsylvania malt houses.

Competition

The major competition for local barley is barley produced in Canada, Europe, and the Midwestern United States. Pennsylvania barley needs competitive pricing with the non-Pennsylvania producers in order to appeal to buyers. Although there is interest in supporting local grains, that does not always equal sales. Often buyers may not be willing to pay a higher price for local grains.

Opportunities and Downfalls for Consideration

Strengths

• Barley can be grown as a cover crop.
• Six-row barley typically does not need any form of irrigation.
• Barley can be grown with other varieties of grains.
• Demand exists for locally grown barley.
• Pennsylvania has malt houses.
• Barley does not require any unique production or harvesting equipment.
• Barley can be used for baked goods, cereals, soups, and livestock feed.

Weaknesses

• Barley for alcohol requires higher quality than that for feed and, therefore, requires more monitoring.
• Barley must be competitively priced against non-Pennsylvania-produced barley.
• If farmer is not already growing grains, buying equipment can be expensive.
• Northwestern farms in the United States produce cheaper grains and are known to be reliable in supplying barley.

Statistics

• On average, one acre of land produces 75 bushels of barley.¹
• One bushel is about 55 pounds of barley.²
• About 6.5 acres are needed to produce one annual run of beer (more for other liquors).³
• One ton per month will support the annual production of one type of liquor at a small distillery.³
• The production cost per acre of barley grown is $375.⁴
• One barrel of beer requires 75 to 120 pounds of barley (or grain) make one barrel.
• At the most, nearly 468,674,400 pounds of barley is required to meet the amount of barrels produced annually in Pennsylvania. This equates to nearly 113,618 acres of land necessary for farming barley.

Micro-Malting Houses

It would be worthwhile taking into consideration starting up a malting house as this would limit waiting time, transportation time and currently there is limited competition. Owning a malting house would be useful not only to you personally in your growing business, but would also allow for you to open up another income by malting other people's grains.

Summary

In recent years, interest in locally sourced malt barley has increased. Although most brewers source their barley from Europe, Canada, and the Midwestern United States, it can grow in Pennsylvania. There are environmental challenges with growing malt barley in Pennsylvania; however, malt barley has the potential for increased successful growth with additional research on varieties that are more suitable to the Pennsylvania soil and climate. This could be conducted via a University or private breeding program by testing different techniques for growing barley to see how they withstand local climates. ³

Farmers interested in growing malt barley would greatly benefit from a cooperative focused on developing malt barley farms. This association would help reduce startup costs for property, harvesting, and microprocessing equipment. In regard to funding a building property, it is important to consider investment in a processing facility for both hops and barley, as this would reduce overhead costs. Without having a local facility, sale of product is difficult for micro-barley farms due to high shipping costs.

As with any business, there are both weaknesses and opportunities, but as was mentioned, there are ways to get help with funding through cooperatives and/or partnerships, PA universities and colleges interested in research, and a growing interest in locally sourced malt barley for alcohol.

Footnotes

¹2017 Pennsylvania Agriculture Overview, USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service

²U.S. Commercial Bushel Sizes, Russ Rowlett, UNC

³The Feasibility of Small Farms Growing Hops and Specialty Grains Profitably in Howard County, Hobie Cohen, Nora Pittmann and Andrew Roehl, University of Maryland

⁴U.S. barley production costs and returns per planted acre, excluding government payments, 2011-2017, USDA

⁵Micro Malt House Process and Design, Purdue University

Resources

Existing Malt Houses in PA

• Deer Creek Malthouse
• Penns Mault
• Double Eagle Malt
• Malt House Ltd.

List of Existing Breweries in PA

Brew Trail -- Pennsylvania Breweries and Brewpubs Map

Penn State University Barley Specialist

Greg Roth