Brewing barley in Tatarstan: How is the growing technology different?

6 July 2020, Monday

One of the brewing companies plans to procure 30 thousand tons of malting barley this year in Tatarstan.

This was reported at a round table held within the business program of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Tatarstan at Field Day in Tatarstan 2020. This direction of crop production will allow agricultural producers of the republic to expand the assortment of marketable products, strengthen the economy of farms, and companies to bring the raw material base closer to the places of production.

“We became interested in this idea and sowed 550 hectares of Despina barley this year,” says the head of the farm “Planin I.A.” Spassky district Igor Planin. - We were attracted by the price promised by the procurers - at least 10 thousand rubles per ton of grain. It is more expensive than wheat. Fertilizing on seedlings and protective measures against weeds and pests were carried out in the required volume, we suppose having a decent harvest.

The production technology of brewing barley differs from the classic barley technology in that the ultimate goal of brewing barley producers is to obtain grain with a low, not more than 11.5% protein content. Only such grain is suitable for the production of beer malt.

“This year about 10 thousand hectares are planted with malting barley in Tatarstan,” informs the deputy head of the agricultural department of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Tatarstan Fargat Zinnatov. - The largest areas are in the Muslyumovsky, Nizhnekamsk, Spassky, Rybno-Slobodsky, Laishevsky districts. - It is important that the company’s specialists are in close contact with agronomists of farms and provide technological support for business projects.

The global agricultural program of the company unites today more than 30 thousand agricultural producers in 13 countries of the world. In Russia, about 140 households in 10 regions participate in it. Brewing barley worth 3 billion rubles is bought annually from Russian farmers.