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(Heineken explores making barley farming greener)
Beer is basically four ingredients; malted grains (usually barley) water, hops and yeast. And now Heineken is looking to make barley farming better for the world.
Here’s the deal…
The target of this bold initiative is to reduce the CO2 emissions normally associated with barley farming and Heineken’s UK arm is all about it.
Working with Muntons, a UK malt supplier, Future Food Solutions, and Yorkshire-based barley farmers, Heineken has embarked on a new trial to explore more sustainable ways of growing barley.
As the Beer Institute correctly notes “Farmed ingredients are a complex system for every brewer, who must work in close partnership with an array of farmers to meet the specialty needs for every beer.”
So starting this fall, ten farmers in the United Kingdom will take part in the pilot program growing 7,000 acres of winter and spring barley varieties, a yield of 25,000 tons of grain, enough to brew 300 million pints of beer.
As part of this program farmers will be using less invasive measures to prepare the land, optimizing crop nitrogen use.
“Without barley we can’t make beer,” said Matt Callan, Supply Chain Director at Heineken…
“This trial is very much about ensuring we create a sustainable long term supply chain that benefits farmers, the planet and biodiversity. Agriculture is the second biggest contributor of our carbon footprint and with our new ambition to hit carbon neutrality by 2040, tackling this part of our footprint is key.”
This pilot program’s outcome will be measured by the amount of CO2 retained in the soil and the reduction in the amount of nitrogen needed to be added to the crop to produce healthy yields.
Heineken is but the latest global brewer to champion more sustainable barley farming practices.
In 2019 Anheuser-Busch introduced a huge program in the US to help barley farmers transition to organic practices. And Molson Coors Beverage Company has invested more than $20 million over the last decade, working with farmers to future-proof their crops.
Bottom line…
We can get snarky about the big beer conglomerates here at American Craft Beer. So it’s only fair that we applaud companies like Heineken as they explore sustainability strategies that could make for a better world.
