Trace your beer back to barley crop

AustralianFarmers

Australia’s largest brewery is now brewing beer with barley traceable back to its farm of origin as part of a groundbreaking deal with Aussie growers.

Asahi Beverages, which owns Carlton & United Breweries has now removed the bulk handlers from the barley supply chain and is now working with a select number of NSW growers through a direct supply chain system that will see Aussie money go direct to Aussie farmers.

The move means Asahi Beverages will now buy up to 40,000 tonnes of barley direct from NSW every year to supply the Yatala brewery.

North Star farmer Andrew Otswald pictured with PURE grain CEO Stuart Tighe in a crop of barley, VB in hand

Picture: Supplied by Asahi Beverages

Before this, growers would have to sell grain to bulk handlers to be stored together, with different grains all mixed together. This new model now means barley brewed can be traced back to the selected few farms, increasing traceability of the product.

Currently seven farmers have joined the program, with more expected to join next year.

North Star farmer Andrew Ostwald has signed up and his barley is now earmarked for use in one of Australia’s most popular beers.

“The barley from my property will be used to brew Victoria Bitter that’s enjoyed across QLD and beyond,” he said.

“The opportunity to tap into a direct deal with a brewing giant such as Asahi Beverages is an enormous leg up for Australian barley growers. By simply removing a layer between the grower and the brewer we can then invest the financial gain into the long-term partnership with Asahi. We’re now in the unique position to afford and plan upgrades to technology, machinery and people.

This deal puts growers back in the driver’s seat, allowing us to di what we do best – grow great barley!

More than 2 million tonnes of malting barley are produced by Australian farmers each year for brewing in Australia and overseas. Barley is one of Australia’s top crops.

Australia is world-renowned for producing high quality malting barley. In Australia, barley is second in crop size only to wheat, covering almost 4 million hectares sweeping from central and southern Queensland, throughout north to south mid-western NSW, northern and western Victoria, north to south central Tasmania, south-east and south-central SA and south-western WA.

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