Western Australia
December 19, 2006
Grains
Research and Development Corporation: The
Crop Doctor
Barley is the cereal ‘story’ on
everyone’s lips in Western Australia and the
Grains Research and Development
Corporation (GRDC) is helping write its next chapter by
supporting projects to value-add its development.
The projects are undertaking research, extension and industry
development activities to underpin the growth of Western
Australia’s $460 million export barley crop, which will
hopefully lead to increased exports to Chinese, Japanese and
South East Asian beer markets.
More malting barley will also assist Joe White Maltings, which
recently spent $46 million upgrading its Western Australian
malthouse.
Officially opening the new facility, Agriculture and Food
Minister, Kim Chance said he expected barley to become as
commonly grown as wheat in Western Australia due to its
lucrative financial incentives.
Mt Madden grower and Western Region Barley Council Chairman,
Steve Tilbrook put an even stronger case for barley’s future,
saying it was already very important.
And during the GRDC Western Panel spring tour, central wheatbelt
growers expressed their desire for a malt barley variety for low
rainfall areas.
GRDC supported researcher, Blakely Paynter of the Department of
Agriculture and Food said the renewed funding of these projects
aim to allow more growers to increase yields, manage input costs
and successfully grow malt barley.
Of course, while growers now have more malting and feed barley
variety options, which offer opportunities to increase grain
yield, if their malting barley varieties don’t meet strict
receival specifications, it will be downgraded to feed at the
bin, reducing the price they are paid.
Worth $1.4 million over the next three years, the two GRDC
projects aim to provide growers with the information to meet the
specifications for malting, feed and shochu barley products.
Mr Paynter said the projects would trial malt and feed varieties
to determine their weaknesses and strengths to help build
variety specific management guidelines and provide information
on when and where a particular barley variety should be sown. The Crop
Doctor is GRDC Managing Director, Peter Reading |