Malting Barley

The Malting Barley Cohort brings together field crop producers in Montérégie who wish to introduce or optimize spring and/or winter barley within their crop rotations.

Sown in the fall and harvested in early summer, winter barley offers valuable agro-environmental benefits such as winter soil cover. It also represents an economic opportunity to meet the demand from Quebec microbreweries for high-quality, locally sourced grain.

Deployed over two years (2025–2026), the cohort provides a space for learning and exchange among producers in order to strengthen technical skills and improve grain classification to malting grade. It also promotes dialogue with buyers to better align agricultural supply with market expectations.

The project aims to:

1. Support the integration of malting barley into crop rotations
2. Optimize agronomic practices
3. Improve post-harvest practices
4. Better understand criteria related to malting-grade classification
5. Foster dialogue between producers and buyers

1. Eight farms established winter barley trials in fall 2025, including the varieties Calypso, Visuel, and Pixel.
2. Production of a strategy to promote malting-grade classification of barley in Quebec, developed in consultation with cohort members, Nicolas Saint-Pierre, M.Sc., agronomist and technical expert, and the Association des microbrasseries du Québec (AMBQ), and subsequently shared with producers, buyers, and strategic sector organizations.
3. During the first year, cohort producers also participated in several activities:

• Training on sustainable practices by Jean Goulet (Semican)
• Training on optimizing post-harvest practices by Nicolas Saint-Pierre, M.Sc., agronomist and technical expert
• Visit to the Innomalt malting facility in Bécancour and exchange between producers and maltsters
• Two webinars with Valley Malt, a craft malthouse based in Massachusetts (USA)

This project is funded by the Quebec Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPAQ) under the Prime-Vert 2023–2026 program and brings together the following enterprises: Agri-Fusion 200 Inc., Brasserie La Ferme, Ferme Bordelo Inc., Ferme du Coin Rond Inc., Ferme Jean et Jacques Leclair Inc., Ferme Mahvhays 2014 Inc., Jean-François Messier and Terre à Boire Inc.