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Malt barley

10K views 38 replies 15 participants last post by  lurker18 
#1 ·
Have seeded copeland for 5 years wondering if there is a better variety or if one the maltsters look for more
 
#3 ·
I grew Claymore feed type this yr. Big yielder, malt is so hard to get. Fertility is the big thing, we all want big yield but too much protein is the scare. There are other factors obviously also that determine malt.
I like the idea of Synergy, looks like it has good yield, almost like a feed type , and also has a lower protein that the other malt varieties.
If you don’t get malt at least you will have a good yielded to sell into the feed market.
 
#5 ·
I grew synergy this year and copeland. The synergy is much better barley and a very good fit if you struggle to get malt, as it yields higher, so you have more bushels should if go feed. Problem with synergy is that everyone is growing it and there is way more being produced than there is demand, so the specs to get malt will be much tougher in a year where there are no weather problems at harvest. Copeland will make malt with lower specs than synergy as it has great demand from maltsters, but less growers every year.
 
#8 ·
Been awhile since been around pricing Malt. Does the price vary by variety now? Used to be grades of malt Special Select - Standard Select and Select that some farmers didn't even know there were grades and price variance, now it is all just one price but never heard of variety price spreads.
 
#7 · (Edited)
Was told by Canada Malt that they won't be offering any synergy Malt contracts next year as it doesn't make very good malt. Have heard some very good yields with it. But who knows, I was told the same thing about Meredith and I still grow and sell it for malt, according to crop insurance #s I think I account for 90% of the total production of Meredith.
 
#10 ·
Had analysis of Metcalfe from this year come back as 32% chitted and 96% germination. So don't know. I thought chitting meant it wouldn't germinate. Local elevator has Metcalfe priced highest, Synergy a penny/bu less and Copeland at 10 cents/bu under Metcalfe.
 
#16 · (Edited)
Basically chitting is an indication of pregermination. The more chitting the more seeds likely to not germinate over time. Doesn't mean it actually will, depends on storage conditions which I don't know know the variables of. So best a guy can do is know germination at seeding time, I doubt 100% of that 12% is going to fail to germinate. Maltsters don't want to risk loss of germination between purchase and use which chitting is indicating, but if it is stored on your farm already then it could be a perfectly fine seed stock. Time will tell.
 
#21 ·
I am a selector for a company not to be named. Chitting is pregermination, and it is more for long term germing rather than right away. Chances are you have it tested within weeks of harvest, so even if it is highly chitted, the germ will still be fairly strong. Retest that in a month and it will go down, and by seeding time, most of the chit will be dead, storage plays a role in this.


As for price spread, there is a difference in the varieties. Metcalfe is usually the highest price because that is what the foreign buyers want, but it is also the worst of the big 3 agronomically. Synergy and Copeland are basically even right now, little better to get Copeland selected because there is more stable demand.


Bow and Connect are the next two malts in Canada that are making noise, but there is limited demand for these varieties, I would be sure to have them contracted before growing them.
 
#27 ·
The problem with the RVA testing is it does not take storage conditions into account. If you had very high RVA numbers and poor storage, it is as bad or worse than moderate RVA numbers with very good storage. It gives you a false comfort to get high numbers and think that the barley will keep for long term, so it is not managed as closely.
 
#31 ·
So what does a lower RVA number mean to germ for say seed to be used next spring? I think my RVA was in the mid 80's. If stored really cold will the low RVA still germ properly next spring for malt, or is it at big risk of losing the germ? How does moisture affect the germ? Say the barley is 15% or 16% moisture and cool, will it lose its germ worse than dry 13.5% barley? Just looking for general guidelines. Never heard of a RVA number till this fall.
 
#30 ·
I grew malt one year everything was perfect, germ, chit, plumpness. It was excepted the company even picked it up got a call a wk later it was rejected due to low germ .. really how could that be. We were screwed, they had our barley and no way to get it back. Basically they paid us feed price and sold it for malt. Bunch of no good crooks, somethings just change.
Whenever I think about growing malt that episode leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
 
#32 ·
Chitting is hard to predict in regards to germination. Last year my Metcalfe went malt except the stuff that got snowed on and I got off in mid-October. Submitted sample for malt and was 96% germ and something like 10% chitted and everything else was good and 51 lbs so was neither accepted or rejected, just put on hold. I cleaned and seeded it this year and will do again next year. Sitting in a flat bottom bin with no air. Probed bin this fall and sent sample in and once again on hold - neither accepted or rejected so nothing really changed. Sent samples to elevator and RayGlen with same answer.

The malt game is kind of crappy. They pissed a lot of guys off with the crap pulled a few years ago. Accepted as malt, wasn't called in for delivery, would have to buy out contract to sell it and then told it was feed when finally called for months later.

However here feed is $3.16 at elevator and malt is $5.12. I can get at best $3.80 bu for feed FOB farm right now through Rayglen or Johnson grain. Usually get malt but $3.20 won't pay bills. Brokers fob farm here were around $3.20 bu mid September if I remember right. Being near feedlot alley changes things as its closer to $4.50 now through broker I would estimate.
 
#35 ·
This is our first year for synergy. Both viterra and pioneer say metcalfe is on the way out and synergy is what they want us to grow. But when it comes time to buy it they will take metcalfe in a flash, even with problems, and will drag their ass on buying synergy, even for a discounted price.
 
#36 ·
I gave up and on the malt game years ago! Got tired of the BS from maltsters! The last year I grew malt, I had production contract for $6.75 which was great, because the price come fall was $5.25, everything was good with my samples, except they kept coming back at 93% germ and minimum germ they wanted was 95%! Very convenient way for them to get out of the contract. Im sure that if I would have signed a contract for $5.25 and the fall price was $6.75 they would have taken it! I now only grow feed barley and can usually grow 10% more than malt, it can be up to 15.5 with usually no discounts, I can move it when I want to move it, not wait until July or August, only to have it rejected then! Feed barley is worry and hassle free for me!
 
#38 ·
Growing and selecting malt this year has been a real head ache. Moisture issues, high chit numbers, low protein, just to name a few. Also, germs failing for no apparent reason where stuff that should be failing is getting good germs.
Also, the selection of malt is highly dependent on where the barley is going to end up, there are 3 groups of customers. Domestic maltsters are very picky on the barley they chose, it really is the best of the best. Then there are the premium export customers, they have higher contract prices, but also set very high standards. Finally there are the "easier" export markets, lower final price, but they also have lower quality demands. Without knowing where the barley is ending up, it is hard to compare one elevator company to the other, as they are adjusting their selections based off the end users specs.
As for different germ numbers between places, remember that these are done on 100 seeds, so getting a different result is not a surprise because it only takes a couple of the failing seeds to make a big percent difference. Personally if I was growing malt, I would request a regerm on anything that fails with a 92+ germ. Like I said, you just need to get 3 right seeds in there to get there germ to pass.
 
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