United Kingdom
July 26, 2010
There remains a strong requirement for winter malting barley to be grown in the UK next season if overall demand for the crop is to be met in 2011, according to two of the UK’s leading maltsters. Despite current market uncertainties resulting from the on-going economical downturn, ahead of planting this autumn they are reminding growers of the important role which winter barley continues to play in farm rotations.
Trevor Wright, Raw Materials Director for Berwick-Upon-Tweed-based maltsters Simpsons Malt Ltd, emphasises that the outlook for 2011 is more positive. He states:
“The requirement in Northern England and Southern Scotland for winter malting barley for harvest 2011 will be higher than in 2010 and it is important that we get sufficient crop in the ground this autumn. The malting industry remains a progressively-expanding sector, even though brewing consumption figures are currently down due to the global recession. We have long-term customers who require winter malting barley and a desire to meet all their requirements through our substantial grower base. New contracts will be on offer shortly and while there are market uncertainties at the moment we are trying to remove them through forward planning and satisfying customer demand.”
McCreath, Simpson and Prentice Ltd supplies its parent company, Simpsons Malt, with barley from a core of 2000 growers in the North of England and Southern Scotland region. The company’s Agrochemical Director, David Cairns, says that recent oversupply of malting barley was a direct result of the fact that higher spring plantings in 2009 coincided with the downturn in the economy.
“This is a short-term issue,” states Mr Cairns. “Plantings are now back to more normal levels, stocks are coming down and demand will gradually rise. Winter malting barley remains a vital part of the rotation for growers in the region, particularly as a good entry for oilseed rape, the main break crop in the area, and also for spreading the seasonal workload. A cultural weed control programme is important in the rotation and winter barley does give growers an opportunity to produce stale seedbeds prior to planting in the autumn, while the use of rotational ploughing ahead of winter barley is also a useful tool. Winter barley is also proving invaluable in livestock-producing regions, because it provides a good straw yield and with many growers chopping wheat straw, barley straw is very much in demand and fetching a good price.”
Variety choice ahead of this autumn is, as ever, led by end-user demand, emphasises Mr Cairns who expects market-leading variety Pearl to retain its 80 per cent share of plantings. He comments:
“Like Pearl, stable-mate variety Cassata comes out of Nickerson’s two-row barley breeding programme and I would expect it to take the remaining 20 per cent of the malting varieties’ market share. That said, everything has got to add up economically for the season ahead and it is important that growers in this region maximise their contract potential with these varieties with a focus on quality, which is key for the malting sector.”
A DELICATE BALANCE
Andy Janes (photo), Marketing Manager for East Anglia-based maltsters Muntons, emphasises that in spite of the good harvest around the world last year, in reality, global stocks of cereals are still delicately balanced and a lot of the surplus will be taken up through increased demand for biofuel production.
Mr Janes, who estimates that there was at least a 20 per cent reduction in UK winter and spring barley plantings during 2009-2010, compared with the previous season, states:
“Because of the over-supply, last year maltsters paid up to £20 per tonne below the cost of growing the crop and farmers switched away from malting barley to other crops. But as supply lessens through fewer plantings, then we could see opportunities for growers if the barley price starts to follow the current upward trend seen in the wheat market. If malting barley prices firm, it is likely that the malting barley acreage will increase next year.”
Mr Janes explains that about 50 per cent of Muntons’ turnover comes from its Malted Ingredients Division, which is involved in the supply of malt products to the food industry, a side of the business in which the company is seeing increasing growth. He adds:
“Malt extract, for example, is a huge output for the business, with over 30,000 tonnes produced annually for a variety of products including breakfast cereals, malt drinks, the baking industry and home-brewing kits. It is important that we continue to develop these markets alongside our core brewing and distilling commitments, and encourage people to understand that malt is a good, natural and wholesome food ingredient. Increasing demand for malt and malted ingredients will ensure that farmers have a ready market for malting barley and can continue to benefit from sales of this premium crop.”
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