A new project has been launched to cut the CO2 emissions of producing barley by 50% in five years.

Major distillers, the Suntory Group, has signed up to field trials with Suffolk-based maltster, Muntons plc, to look at how barley could be grown in a more sustainable way to reduce green house gas (GHG) emissions and protect waterways.

The pilot will focus on a number of sustainable farming techniques, including inter-row cropping, growing cover crop mixes with the likes of siletina oil radish, winter rye and oats, berseem clover and phacelia to ward of pests and disease, plus using less invasive measures to prepare the land and optimising nitrogen use.

Outcomes will be measured in terms of the amount of CO2 sequestered by the soil and the reduction in the amount of N needed to be added to the crop to produce healthy yields. It is part of Suntory's global programme to reducing carbon emissions from the crops it uses.

Starting this year, 16 Norfolk-based barley farmers have pledged around 400 acres to the trial and hope to produce more than 1000 tonnes of barley from spring and winter varieties. This will be made into malt by Muntons and then used in Suntory’s beer and whisky production from 2024.

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The project will start by baselining all crop-related emissions, which will inform an innovative nature-based programme of interventions that seek to reduce emissions, enhance soil health and protect water, while maintaining crop performance and grain quality. The ambition is to produce barley with 50% lower GHG emissions within five years.

Suntory stated that malted barley contributes 39% and 41% to the carbon footprint of beer and whisky, respectively, so the success of this trial could pave the way for reducing the overall value chain of production by 20% in a single leap.

Josh Dewing, from Dewing Grain, is co-ordinating the farmer input. He said: “We’re delighted to be taking part in this Suntory initiative to trial low carbon farming. As an agricultural business that has taken sustainability very seriously for some time now, it is fantastic to see leadership on this issue from big brands looking to bridge that gap between producer and consumer.

"With the trial covering a huge amount of acreage, it has the potential to generate some really positive outcomes for the environment and demonstrate farming’s vital role in mitigating climate change.”