Agricare

Nov 16, 2023

November 16, 2023 1:30 pm Attending the AgriCare tillage conference l to r: Paul O'Doherty, PCI Associates; Tom Bryan, Boortmalt and John Dalton, Dalton's of Kilkenny and Athy Boortmalt’s Barley Quality Manager, Tom Bryan, has confirmed that malting barley rejections have exceeded 50% for 2023: “This is an estimated figure. Boortmalt no longer deals directly with farmers when it comes to actual grain procurement. “However, I can confirm that the levels of quality-related problems linked to malting barley crops grown in Ireland this year are the highest they have been in almost four decades.” Bryan spoke at this week’s AgriCare tillage conference in Co. Donegal, where he explained that barley suitable for malting must have a protein content within the range of 8.8 – 10.8%. “These are not arbitrary figures that Boortmalt has come up with. These are standards that customers demand of us – they must be met,” he said. Advertisement Bryan confirmed that demand for Irish-grown malting barley continues to outstrip supply. “The potential to grow Ireland’s malting barley acreage is significant. Boortmalt has investment plans in place to bring a new malting facility on-line to Athy over the coming months. “The unit will provide an additional capacity of some 60,000 to 80,000t annually. I am also aware of other companies committing to new malting projects that will come on stream in the near future,” he added. Bryan highlighted the commitment made by growers in Co. Donegal to develop a malting barley sector in the county. This initiative has been very much centred around the growing of winter barley varieties. “Boortmalt has been very supportive of this project, and this will remain the case. Craft is a winter barley variety that is now accepted as having significant malting potential. “Meanwhile, the challenge of identifying new malting barley varieties continues. A specific committee has been established to address this issue, but it will be a slow process. Not every barley variety is suitable for malting. Advertisement “The growing conditions in Ireland are completely different to those that impact in the likes of the UK or France. There is also a requirement to identify new varieties that will consistently deliver from a malting point of view,” Bryan said. Bryan also confirmed that Boortmalt had no plans to change its current payment model for farmers. “Why would we want to do this? The current pricing model has delivered Irish farmers with bonuses of €100/t above feed in both 2022 and 2021. “Given these circumstances, I believe it is in everyone’s interest to retain the current payment model.”