Reading Time: 3 minutes New Sarepta was long past its heyday when Will Munsey arrived in the mid-2000s, but the hobby farmer turned mead maker is hoping to bring some new life to the sleepy hamlet. “New Sarepta was a really booming little community up until the 1950s, when better roads were built and people started getting individual automobiles […] Read more
Mead maker fermenting something new for hamlet of New Sarepta
Alberta companies join Black Lives Matter beer fundraiser
Reading Time: 4 minutes Bringing people together over a beer. That’s the goal of several businesses from across central Alberta that have joined forces to create a fundraiser beer to support the Black Lives Matter movement. “Beer is a great equalizer. You can break down a lot of barriers just by sitting down and having a beer with someone,” […] Read more
With beer taps off, malt barley demand down
No significant drop in barley acres expected
MarketsFarm — Declining beer consumption due to the COVID-19 pandemic will also lead to reduced demand for the malt barley to brew it — but acreage to the crop is unlikely to see much adjustment on the Prairies. “I don’t think there’s any question — without sporting events, and festivals, and concerts – that beer […] Read more
China-Australia row to reshuffle trade in bulging barley market
Gains for Canada, other exporters won't be 'magical'
Paris | Reuters — A prohibitive Chinese import tariff on Australian barley will benefit other suppliers without changing the bleak global outlook caused by large stocks and depressed beer demand, analysts and traders said. Beijing said on Monday it would apply an 80.5 per cent tariff on Australian barley imports for the next five years, […] Read more
Better barley: There’s a long wish list for brewers and feeders
Yield is No. 1 for growers but elements such as ‘Lox,’ beta-glucan, and acid detergent fibre are key, too
Reading Time: 5 minutes Ask most barley producers what they want in a variety and the answers won’t surprise you: Better yield, standability and disease resistance. But when it comes to buyers, it gets a little more complex. Both foreign and domestic customers — especially beer makers, but also feeders — are looking for traits few people even thought […] Read more
Barley organization to streamline
Reading Time: < 1 minute Alberta Barley is welcoming the Barley Council of Canada’s decision to undergo a “strategic realignment.” Changes will involve collaboration on delivery of service and sharing of resources with Cereals Canada, the Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre, and the Brewing and Malting Barley Research Institute. The move follows a review by the Barley Roundtable, an initiative […] Read more
New blockchain beer tells the farm-to-glass story
Reading Time: 3 minutes The road from field to glass is a long one for the malt barley that goes in your beer. And now you can join it on its journey, thanks to a new blockchain beer made, malted, and brewed in Alberta. “The whole idea was to track the farm-to-glass story,” said Natasha Peiskar, head brewer at […] Read more
Being open to new ideas creates opportunity
Farm family isn’t fearful of doing something different if someone is passionate about it
Reading Time: < 1 minute When Kyle Geeraert was getting his start in agriculture one of his stops was managing a grain company, where he and wife Meleah were exposed to some new malting equipment they thought had promise. Meleah happened to have some connections in the industry. She is the daughter of Spencer and Lynne Hilton and malting barley […] Read more
Ponoka microbrewery eyes world domination
Reading Time: 5 minutes Kari and Brent Tarasoff had no intention of opening a brewery when they began growing hops in Penticton, B.C. four years ago. But their five-year plan got thrown out the window last year when they opened Siding 14 Brewing Company in Ponoka with two partners. And pretty soon, they’ll need to toss out their new […] Read more
Trying to grow malt barley can make you cry in your beer
There’s way more money in malt than feed, but just 20 per cent of growers capture 80 per cent of malt sales
Reading Time: 4 minutes Kevin Sich thinks malt barley could give canola a run for its money any day of the week — even if market share doesn’t reflect that. “Malt barley is probably one of your most profitable crops. Return on investment is probably very strong,” said Sich, Rahr Malting’s grain department manager. “But if malt barley is […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
