Barley and Sustainable Brewing: The History and Challenges (Part 1)

For thousands of years, barley has been at the heart of brewing. Today, this ancient crop is not just a key ingredient in your favorite beer – it’s at the forefront of sustainable agriculture and Climate-Smart brewing.

The Ancient History of Barley

Barley is one of the world’s oldest cultivated crops, with a history spanning 10,000 to 12,000 years. It’s the fourth largest cultivated crop globally and has been a staple in:

• malt beverage production
• animal fodder, and
• human food (gaining popularity due to health benefits).

While modern cultivars have come a long way in terms of agronomic performance when compared to their ancestors, the impacts of climate change appear to be altering the playing field. This poses new challenges for programs practicing solely conventional breeding techniques.

The Brewing Supply Chain

Many think farmers are the first stop in the craft brewing supply chain, but the true starting point lies in the genetic composition of barley plants— which is the territory of barley breeders.

Superior craft beer results from multiple supply chain points hitting targets as ingredients pass from partner to partner:

• Barley breeders
• Farmers
• Maltsters
• Brewers

As the second stop in this chain, when farmers miss agronomic targets, it diminishes the potential for high-quality products down the line.

The Keys to Resilient Barley: Genetic Diversity and Speed

Barley gene banks store an enormous treasure trove of plant genetic resources (PGRs). Globally, there are about 400,000 accessions of barley, distinct and unique crop samples representing a cultivar or breeding line that have been collected and stored for conservation. Maximizing the available gene pool of parental traits is a solid first step in improving today’s contracted varieties. The key to developing resilient barley comes down to genetic diversity and speed.

Genetic Diversity: Barley breeding programs are ultimately looking for new, superior combinations. These new varieties must be more resistant to biotic stresses, such as fungi, viruses, and insects; and abiotic stresses, such as heat, drought, cold, and other environmental threats – many of which are impacted by climate change.

Speed: There is a timer running in the head of every plant breeder. While their ability to create new superior genetics is not in question, getting these genetics into the supply chain before they become obsolete is. Make no mistake, it’s a race, and climate change is applying new levels of pressure each year.

Breeding for a Better Future

The aim of improved varieties is to:

• make farming more resilient
• increase farmer income, and
• improve the barley value chain.

If a variety of barley can produce an equal yield with less water, has an improved capacity to use nitrogen, or is more resistant to a disease, that variety will drive cost savings across the entire supply chain.

“Combining the ability of soil to contribute to crops (soil health) with advancements in genetics is the quickest way to see positive change happen. This is about combining a holistic approach to agriculture with cutting-edge advancements in breeding technology.” – Zach Gaines, Director of Raw Materials and Logistics at Proximity Malt.

Misconceptions in Breeding Techniques for Sustainable Barley

Improving a crop’s genetic capabilities through breeding, or genetic improvement, has been integral to enhancing agricultural productivity for thousands of years. As these technologies advance, there are misconceptions and strong feelings generated by consumers around the use of these techniques.

For more than two decades, a focal point has centered around altering the genetic composition of plants. Much of the objection comes from equating any kind of breeding with genetically modified organisms (GMOs). However, it’s important to understand the distinctions between three widely recognized newer technologies used to alter the genetic composition of plants:

• GMOs: Genetically modified plants have the DNA of another species of plant added to their own, known as a transgenic event. The plant or fruit produced is a GMO fruit or grain. GMOs must undergo a multi-year process called deregulation, where they are highly vetted by the USDA, FDA, and other institutions before being commercially released. As of the writing of this blog, transgenically modified barley varieties have not been deregulated anywhere on planet Earth.  (Editor’s note: We learned after this blog was published that a transgenic wheat variety was approved in the USA this summer.  This variety, originally grown in Argentina and Brazil, carries a drought tolerant trait that will offer stable yields during droughts.  There remain several regulatory steps that will need to be taken before this variety can be grown commercially in the United States, including closed-system field trials.)
• Mutants: Mutants (and edited plants) are changed by manipulating their own genetic makeup. That is, no foreign DNA is introduced. Mutations are events that could occur in nature. Mutagenesis creates these changes by using chemicals or radiation to alter a plant’s genetic makeup in a much shorter period of time.
• Edited Plants: Gene editing techniques target changes to specific DNA sequences in a plant that can be identified once a plant’s genome has been mapped. Technologies like CRISPR and CAS9 are examples of this type of genetic editing.

Understanding these distinctions is crucial for consumers and industry professionals alike as each method has its own implications for sustainability, regulation, and public perceptions.

Final Thoughts on Barley’s Evolution and Challenges

Building a Climate-Smart barley supply chain starts with plant breeders finding optimized combinations of genetics to create improved cultivars, testing these varieties in farmer’s fields, and ultimately selecting the most resilient varieties.

Few things can advance in a supply chain as complex as the brewing industry without buy-in and motivation from all impacted parties, including brewers and distillers. Supporting positive change at the inception point in a raw materials value chain is supporting increased value for the future of all stakeholders.

In our next post, we’ll explore the cutting-edge innovations in barley breeding that are building on this foundation of sustainability. We’ll delve into advanced techniques like Genomic Selection (GS) and Marker-Assisted Selection (MAS) and how they’re revolutionizing the development of climate-resilient barley varieties. Stay tuned to learn how these innovations are shaping the future of sustainable brewing.

Ready to try Climate-Smart barley? Download the ReGenMalt impact analysis and learn how you can play a role in future-proofing craft beer from climate change.