How Small Malthouses Are Changing Beer, Whiskey And Agriculture

When the Craft Maltsters Guild formed in 2013, it did so with a mere eight member malthouses. Today, the Guild boasts 110 member malthouses, most of which are located in North America, but also hailing from around the world. Although the Guild does not have a precise number, it is aware there are a number of other small malthouses that have not yet joined the Guild.

Suffice it to say, in the decade since the Guild was formed, craft malt has become a real industry.

“Craft malt has really taken hold as a direct consequence of the growth of craft breweries and craft distilleries,” said Steve Kurowski, executive director of the Guild in a telephone interview. “These breweries and distilleries are small businesses and many are unable or unwilling to do business with the big players in malt. They built their businesses asking their customers to support local business, so they themselves want to support local businesses. That means working with craft maltsters who listen to the needs of, and are nimble in responding to, their customers.”

The growth of small maltsters, who themselves buy raw grain—typically barley and wheat, but also rye, corn and other grains—from local farmers, has benefits beyond local beer and spirits. Because these small maltsters make malt in batches a fraction of the size made by large malthouses, they can source grains from small, local farmers, which reduces monocropping and allows more diverse crop rotations, resulting in healthier soil for all crops, not just brewing grains.

Large malthouses need large quantities of raw grain that is as uniform as possible, so they source grain of a handful of varieties from a small region of America. In the case of barley, for example, all that barley is typically of two or three varieties and sourced from the Midwest states. Small malthouses, by contrast, can purchase grain from farms in other regions — from New York to California. The varieties of barley that grow well in the Midwest states will not grow well in these other regions. So farmers growing barley in other regions grow barley suited to their local soil conditions and climates. Diversity and variety are good for the agricultural industry since it offers protection against the spread of disease and fungi.

The growth of small maltsters also allows more farmers to include malting barley in their crop rotation which increases revenue for farmers who would otherwise not be able to grow it. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that most farms are not profitable and by providing the opportunity for farmers to grow a higher-value crop, craft maltsters can help remedy that problem.

“By working with local farms, small maltsters promote less monoculture, more sustainable farming practices and closer connection to the community,” said Kurowski. Adding more crops into a rotation is generally accepted as being better for the soil, since different crops contribute and remove different nutrients to and from the soil.

September is Craft Malt Month, an initiative of the Craft Maltsters Guild to promote the work of the Guild and bring attention to the work of small malthouses and small farmers.