All-Round varieties will conquer Europe

The European and the international malting barley markets are more and more signed by concentration of the malting and brewing industry. In the future only some of the malters and the brewers will regulate the market.

With this in mind the challenge of the breeders is to breed new sorts with good agricultural and malting characteristics.

The spring barley breeding of the companies Nordsaat Saatzucht GmbH and Saatzucht Dr. J. Ackermann is based on testing the genetic material all over Germany and in Europe since about 10 years.

From “mini-plots” to official audits

Young breeding-material will already be tested in small monitoring units in Germany, France and Great Britain (1m²) for their main characteristics. This allows to evaluate the breeding material under different environmental conditions. In the second year, first yield trials are made in six locations in Germany and in four other European countries. The best lines of these trials, stable and high in yield, in these locations are analysed in small malting-tests at the main breeding station of Nordsaat Saatzucht GmbH (Boehnshausen, Germany) to achieve secure statements about the malting quality of the new breeds. These malting tests are necessary since exclusively malting barley varieties fulfilling the demands of brewing and malting industries are qualified to conquer the market. The official tests in the respective countries follow the breeder-own tests.

No “may flies”

That this concept is successful, is shown by the Europe-wide admittance of the malting barley ANNABELL. ANNABELL demonstrates very good and stable yields under different climatic requirements:

Ireland 107%, Denmark 106%, Sweden 105%, Hungary 108%, Germany 104% and Poland 105% (relative yield - official results 2000).

This is not an individual case, since with our new varieties URSA and AURIGA two excellent malting barleys had been approved for the European market. Notably URSA combines agronomical resistance and good malting characteristics.

New developments of Nordsaat promise similar opportunities of an Europe-wide approval. The variety XANADU has very good malting characteristics and is listed in Germany, Austria, and France at the best possible rate classification in quality. The new variety BEATRIX looks also very promising due to very high yield potential in a lot of country in combination with a good malting quality.

For the conquering of the brewing market not only the development is important. The acceptance of brewing and malting industries have to be given as well. This is why  SAATEN-UNION experts are constantly in close contact with the processing industries, in order to identify and position the top varieties in Europe’s market.

Dr. Lissy Kuntze,
NORDSAAT Saatzucht GmbH