All-Group Session with the Montana Wheat & Barley Committee

In this half hour you’ll learn why Great Falls, Montana, is arguably the epicenter of most of the beer in the United States, in terms of producing barley for breweries of all sizes.

Transcript

1. The Montana Difference Dave Tweet June 7, 2019
2. • Three states produce 75% of the barley in the U.S. • Montana is #1 in seeded acres • 65% to 70% are malting barley varieties • 2018 produced 33 million bushels • 95% forward contracted Montana Barley Production
3. Montana Wheat & Barley
4. Sustainability
5. Research • Improve Yield & Nitrogen Use • Integrated Pest Management (IPM) • Crop Rotation • No Till Farming • Water Use Efficiency • Drought Tolerance
6. Montana Barley Variety Development Past • Research & Production for large scale brewers Present • Research focused on craft beer needs Future • Craft beer continues to grow market share
7. Malt Quality Analysis Lab • Innovative • 5 to 100 grams for testing-wide variety • Sample run takes 1 week for results • Adjust for temperature, humidity and time • Gather and analyze data Jamie Sherman—Barley Breeder jsherman@montana.edu
8. MSU Projects • Collaborating with CSU on Rocky Mountain Initiative • Studying specific varieties/flavor • Heirloom study • Czechoslovakia • Genetics versus Process • Malting variety 9 different ways-MSU, CSU, Rahr • Is genetic data or process more important?
9. Specialty Crop • Malt Barley is a specialty crop bought based on quality • Montana has a prime climate for growing malt barley • Long-term contract programs & established relationships • Growers self-fund to improve overall industry • Research based on producer and industry input • Family-owned • Multi-generational • Sustainable
10. Working Together High Quality Beer High Quality Malt High Quality BARLEY
11. Thank you!