Quality of western Canadian barley in 2024: Summary, growing conditions and production

Barley Production and Quality of Western Canadian Malting Barley 2024
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ISSN 1182-4417

Summary

Production: In 2024, the total area seeded with barley in western Canada was 2.504 million hectares. This is approximately 13% lower than in 2023 and 7% lower than the 10-year average (2.688 million hectares). Barley production in western Canada in 2024 is estimated at 7.839 million tonnes. This is approximately 10% lower than in 2023 and 7% lower than the 10-year average. Heat stress during the filling period contributed to a lower than expected barley yield and production.

Top varieties: In 2024, AAC Synergy remained the most popular variety in western Canada, accounting for approximately 34% of the area seeded with malting barley. The area seeded with CDC Copeland (17%) continued to decline. The area seeded with newer varieties, such as CDC Fraser (8%), and CDC Churchill (7%), increased noticeably. The acreage of Sirish increased to 14%, although this malting variety (registered in 2017) is used mostly for general purpose or feed. The area seeded with AAC Connect (12%) in 2024 was similar to that in 2023. The area seeded with AC Metcalfe declined to approximately 1.5% of the area seeded with malting barley.

Growing conditions: The cool and wet conditions at the beginning of the 2024 growing season substantially improved soil moisture which gave the barley crop a good start. Excessive heat in July, however, substantially affected the physical characteristics and composition of barley grain in 2024. Occasional rain in August caused some pre-harvest sprouting in parts of Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Barley quality: The average test weight of malting barley in 2024 was 64.7 kg/hL, which is lower than the 2023 average (65.0 kg/hL) and lower than the 10-year average (66.6 kg/hL). The average 1000 kernel weight in 2024 was 44.1 g, which is substantially lower than the 10-year average (45.6 g). The lower kernel plumpness in 2024 was associated with a lower starch content in the grain. However, the average level of barley proteins (12.2%) in 2024, was similar to last year, and only slightly higher than the 10-year average (12.0%). Despite some pre-harvest sprouting, barley exhibited an excellent average germination energy (99%), a high germination index, and no water sensitivity.

Malting performance: In 2024, the combination of lower test weight, lower grain density and smaller kernel size in malting barley contributed to relatively easy and quick water absorption during steeping and good modification during germination. This resulted in the production of well-modified malt with high friability and ample levels of enzymes (diastatic power and α-amylase), soluble proteins, and free amino nitrogen (FAN). Wort from 2024 barley was also noted for its low levels of β-glucans and very good (low) viscosity values. The smaller, lighter and thinner kernels of 2024 barley negatively affected the malt extract. Malt made from 2024 barley produced lower than expected levels of extract with substantial differences in extract levels among different Canadian malting varieties. The overall malting performance of this year’s barley, however, was good.

Growing and harvesting conditions

Beneficial rain was received across much of western Canada in April and early May, which substantially improved soil moisture and gave the crop a good start in 2024. By the end of May seeding progress in Alberta was ahead of normal, but seeding in Manitoba and Saskatchewan lagged due to a significant rainfall. In May, the average temperature across the Prairies was close to normal (Figure 1.1), but the amount of precipitation was much higher than normal (Figure 1.2). In June, lower temperatures and rainfall continued to contribute to optimal soil moisture conditions in much of Saskatchewan and Alberta, but led to excessive soil moisture in parts of Manitoba.

The cool temperatures in May and June (approximately 2°C below normal) delayed crop growth across the Prairies, but by the end of June the crop conditions were generally favorable across western Canada. Temperatures in July increased significantly, with Alberta and western parts of Saskatchewan experiencing consecutive days with temperatures exceeding 35°C (Figure 1.3). While the warmer weather in July was beneficial to crop development, the excessive heat also had a negative effect on the crop. After a very strong start to the growing season, the yield expectations were not met. The heat stress in July also contributed to lower grain plumpness and lower test weight than normal. Occasional rain in August (Figure 1.4) caused some pre-harvest sprouting.

Map of western Canada — **Figure 1.1** Mean temperature difference (°C) from normal in May 2024.

Barley production in 2024

Annual production statistics

The total area seeded with barley in western Canada was 2.504 million hectares in 2024. This is approximately 13% lower than in 2023 and 7% lower than the 10-year average (2.688 million hectares) (Table 2.1). Barley production in western Canada is estimated at 7.839 million tonnes. This is approximately 10% lower than in 2023 and 7% lower than the 10-year average (Table 2.2). Heat stress during the filling period contributed to a lower than anticipated barley yield (63.1 bushels per acre) and lower than anticipated barley production in 2024 (Table 2.3 and Figure 2.3).

Table 2.1 Area (million hectares) seeded with barley in Canada.

Location	2024^Footnote1	2023	10-year average^Footnote2
Manitoba	0.126	0.168	0.153
Saskatchewan	0.936	1.135	1.107
Alberta	1.418	1.552	1.404
British Columbia	0.023	0.027	0.024
Western Canada	2.504	2.881	2.688
Canada	2.592	2.967	2.802

description follows — **Figure 2.1** Annual comparison of area (million hectares) seeded with barley in western Canada.

Area seeded with barley (million hectares)
Year	Manitoba	Saskatchewan	Alberta	Western Canada
2014	0.130	0.818	1.315	2.284
2015	0.182	0.947	1.416	2.570
2016	0.168	1.002	1.382	2.575
2017	0.107	0.941	1.153	2.219
2018	0.131	1.089	1.260	2.501
2019	0.136	1.275	1.442	2.878
2020	0.168	1.264	1.482	2.944
2021	0.167	1.500	1.565	3.262
2022	0.171	1.126	1.438	2.761
2023	0.168	1.135	1.552	2.881
2024	0.126	0.936	1.418	2.504

Table 2.2 Barley production (million tonnes) in Canada.

Location	2024^Footnote1	2023	10-year average^Footnote2
Manitoba	0.512	0.665	0.546
Saskatchewan	3.035	3.227	3.310
Alberta	4.229	4.721	4.471
British Columbia	0.063	0.064	0.060
Western Canada	7.839	8.677	8.386
Canada	8.144	8.905	8.748

Production of barley (million tonnes)
Year	Manitoba	Saskatchewan	Alberta	Western Canada
2014	0.355	2.173	4.131	6.702
2015	0.599	2.863	4.289	7.819
2016	0.588	3.375	4.398	8.419
2017	0.438	3.135	3.906	7.516
2018	0.501	3.439	3.996	7.997
2019	0.529	4.449	4.955	9.996
2020	0.686	4.385	5.283	10.420
2021	0.439	2.499	3.648	6.650
2022	0.657	3.551	5.381	9.666
2023	0.665	3.227	4.721	8.677
2024	0.512	3.035	4.229	7.839

Table 2.3 Average barley yield (bushels per acre) in Canada.

Location	2024^Footnote1	2023	10-year average^Footnote2
Manitoba	78.3	75.4	71.6
Saskatchewan	64.9	57.4	60.8
Alberta	60.6	62.9	68.2
British Columbia	54.7	55.2	56.6
Western Canada	63.1	61.4	65.3
Canada	63.2	61.2	65.0

Average barley yield (bushels per acre)
Year	Manitoba	Saskatchewan	Alberta
2014	58.2	53.7	66.3
2015	68.8	60.7	68.3
2016	72.0	69.8	75.9
2017	80.4	66.4	71.8
2018	75.3	62.7	66.8
2019	76.9	69.3	72.4
2020	79.9	68.7	74.0
2021	54.8	35.5	47.4
2022	74.3	63.4	75.9
2023	75.4	57.4	62.9
2024	78.3	64.9	60.6

Distribution of barley classes and varieties

Barley is grown across the Canadian Prairies and is used for malting, food and general purposes (feed and forage). Based on insured commercial acres in 2024, Alberta remained the biggest producer of barley in western Canada, followed by Saskatchewan and Manitoba (Figure 2.4). The distribution of barley classes in each province in 2024 was similar to that observed in 2023 (Figure 2.4). More than 50% of the area seeded with barley in western Canada in 2024 was in Alberta. The area seeded with general-purpose barley in Alberta (31.0%) exceeded that seeded with malting barley (24.0%). Saskatchewan accounted for approximately 36% of the area seeded with barley in western Canada. The area seeded with malting barley in Saskatchewan (21.0%) surpassed that seeded with general purpose barley (12.0%). Manitoba remained the smallest producer of barley in western Canada and accounted for approximately 6.3% of the total area seeded with barley on the prairies. AAC Synergy, a malting (M) barley, was the most popular variety seeded in western Canada in 2024 and exceeded CDC Austenson, a general-purpose (GP) barley, for the first time since 2010. The other popular varieties were CDC Copeland (M), Sirish (M/GP), AAC Connect (M), Esma (GP), CDC Fraser (M), Brahma (GP), and CDC Churchill (M) (Figure 2.5). Although initially registered as malting barley, Sirish is seldom selected for malting and is used primarily as general-purpose barley.

% of area seeded with barley in 2024
Location	Malting	Food	General purpose	Not specified
Alberta	24.0	1.2	31.0	0.0
Saskatchewan	21.0	0.0	12.0	3.7
Manitoba	2.3	0.1	4.0	0.1

% of area seeded with barley in 2023
Location	Malting	Food	General purpose	Not specified
Alberta	22.1	1.5	28.0	0.1
Saskatchewan	23.5	0.1	13.0	4.0
Manitoba	2.4	0.2	4.1	0.2

% of area seeded with barley in western Canada
Variety	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
CDC Austenson	16.49	18.56	21.65	20.42	18.74	15.19
AAC Synergy	10.92	12.79	14.89	14.46	16.29	16.08
CDC Copeland	25.05	24.07	18.40	15.81	11.30	8.31
AAC Connect	1.17	2.95	4.57	4.91	6.23	5.88
Sirish	0.19	0.89	2.56	3.83	6.14	6.72
Brahma	4.45	4.75	4.99	4.65	3.97	3.65
Esma	no data	0.00	0.13	1.22	3.65	5.75
CDC Churchill	no data	no data	0.14	0.47	1.54	3.43
CDC Fraser	0.30	0.95	1.74	1.92	3.21	3.86

Distribution of malting varieties

In 2024, AAC Synergy was the most popular cultivar of malting barley grown in western Canada (Figure 2.6, Table 2.4). The area seeded with AAC Synergy accounted for 33.6% of the area seeded with malting varieties in western Canada. The area seeded with CDC Copeland (17.4%) substantially decreased compared to 2023 (Figure 2.6). The other popular malting varieties in 2024 were AAC Connect (12.3%) and CDC Fraser (8.1%). CDC Churchill is also becoming a popular variety whose acreage increased to 7.1% in 2024 from 3.1% in 2023. The area planted with Sirish, a malting variety registered in 2017, continues to increase, although this cultivar is used mostly for general purpose/feed. The area seeded with AC Metcalfe decreased from 3.7% in 2023 to 1.5% in 2024. The areas seeded with CDC Copper and Bill Coors 100 remained relatively small, 1.1% and 0.6%, respectively (Table 2.4). In 2024, six-rowed cultivars accounted for approximately 2.0% of the total area seeded with malting barley, slightly lower that 2.7% estimated last year. Legacy, Celebration and Tradition remained the top six-rowed varieties (Table 2.4).

% of area seeded with malting barley
Variety	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
CDC Copeland	44.03	42.44	34.69	31.20	22.33	17.36
AC Metcalfe	23.70	17.66	11.15	9.20	3.72	1.53
AAC Synergy	19.20	22.54	28.08	28.50	32.19	33.60
AAC Connect	2.06	5.19	8.62	9.70	12.30	12.25
Sirish	0.33	1.58	4.84	7.60	12.12	13.97
CDC Churchill	no data	0.02	0.26	0.90	3.05	7.12
CDC Fraser	0.53	1.67	3.28	3.80	6.35	8.11

Table 2.4 Distribution of malting barley varieties as a percentage (%) of area seeded with malting barley in western Canada in 2024^Footnote3.

Malting barley varieties, 2-rowed	Alberta	Saskatchewan	Manitoba	Western Canada
AAC Synergy	13.07	18.78	1.63	33.60
CDC Copeland	9.08	7.91	0.26	17.36
Sirish	13.36	0.33	0.05	13.97
AAC Connect	3.35	7.15	1.57	12.25
CDC Fraser	3.19	4.63	0.29	8.11
CDC Churchill	4.14	2.56	0.42	7.12
AC Metcalfe	0.64	0.75	0.08	1.53
CDC Copper	0.90	0.06	0.05	1.06
Bill Coors 100	0.60	0.00	0.00	0.60
CDC Bow	0.35	0.07	0.03	0.46
Cerveza	0.23	0.13	0.02	0.39
Newdale	0.07	0.13	0.11	0.31
AB BrewNet	0.28	0.00	0.00	0.28
CDC Goldstar	0.00	0.25	0.00	0.25
Bentley	0.14	0.00	0.00	0.14
CDC Stratus	0.09	0.00	0.00	0.09
Harrington	0.02	0.06	0.00	0.08
Torbellino	0.07	0.00	0.00	0.07
CDC PlatinumStar	0.00	0.05	0.00	0.05
Summit	0.00	0.00	0.04	0.04
AB Dram	0.04	0.00	0.00	0.04
CDC Aurora Nijo	0.04	0.00	0.00	0.04
Other	0.13	0.00	0.00	0.13
Total	49.80	42.87	4.57	97.97

Malting barley varieties, 6-rowed	Alberta	Saskatchewan	Manitoba	Western Canada
Legacy	0.23	1.10	0.03	1.37
Celebration	0.00	0.12	0.17	0.29
Tradition	0.07	0.00	0.09	0.17
Other	0.17	0.03	0.00	0.21
Total	0.49	1.25	0.30	2.03

Distribution of general purpose and food barley varieties

Based on the 2024 insured acreage in western Canada, food (F) and general purpose (GP) barley varieties accounted for approximately 47% of the total area seeded with barley (Figure 2.4). Although CDC Austenson continued to predominate the area seeded with GP barley varieties, it has continued to decrease in acreage since 2021 (Table 2.5 and Figure 2.7). The area seeded with Brahma, Oreana, Claymore, Canmore, and CDC Coalition decreased slightly in 2024 compared to 2023. The acreage of CDC Maverick in 2024 increased from that in 2023. The acreage of several other newer GP varieties, such as Esma, Aldorado, AB Hague, and AB Prime, also increased in 2024 compared to 2023 (Figure 2.7).

% of area seeded with general purpose and food barley in western Canada
Variety	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
CDC Austenson	40.42	42.90	46.10	41.45	37.95	31.17
Esma	no data	no data	0.27	2.47	7.38	11.76
Brahma	10.91	11.00	10.63	9.43	8.04	7.46
Altorado	no data	0.03	1.11	2.21	4.62	6.67
CDC Maverick	3.68	3.86	3.49	4.87	4.67	5.78
Oreana	2.48	4.10	7.12	6.83	5.82	4.59
Claymore	2.52	4.69	6.04	5.88	5.40	3.87
AB Hague	no data	no data	0.01	0.13	0.96	1.39
AB Prime	no data	no data	0.02	0.06	0.51	1.33

Table 2.5 Distribution of barley varieties as a percentage (%) of area seeded with general purpose and food barley in western Canada in 2024^Footnote3.

General purpose and food barley varieties, 2-rowed	Alberta	Saskatchewan	Manitoba	Western Canada
CDC Austenson	14.34	11.87	4.69	31.17
Esma	10.54	0.30	0.93	11.76
Brahma	7.43	0.04	0.00	7.46
Altorado	5.52	1.07	0.08	6.67
CDC Maverick	1.70	3.98	0.07	5.78
Oreana	4.14	0.42	0.03	4.59
Conlon	2.26	0.43	1.26	3.95
Claymore	1.65	1.87	0.34	3.87
Champion	2.28	0.55	0.03	2.86
Canmore (F)	2.30	0.00	0.22	2.52
Xena	2.21	0.20	0.00	2.41
CDC Cowboy	1.01	0.86	0.00	1.86
CDC Coalition	1.54	0.00	0.00	1.54
AB Hague	1.01	0.33	0.05	1.39
AB Prime	1.33	0.00	0.00	1.33
KWS Kellie	1.26	0.00	0.00	1.26
CDC Renegade	0.38	0.54	0.04	0.95
AB Wrangler	0.34	0.22	0.00	0.58
Gadsby	0.28	0.11	0.00	0.39
Ponoka	0.37	0.00	0.00	0.37
LG Diablo	0.34	0.00	0.00	0.34
Other	0.70	0.16	0.12	0.98
Total	62.92	22.95	7.85	94.04

General purpose and food barley varieties, 6-rowed	Alberta	Saskatchewan	Manitoba	Western Canada
AB Advantage	1.33	1.24	0.16	2.75
AB Cattlelac	0.75	0.20	0.17	1.12
AB Tofield	0.37	0.00	0.00	0.37
Richer	0.00	0.00	0.25	0.25
AB Standwell	0.24	0.00	0.00	0.24
Seebe	0.20	0.00	0.00	0.20
Amisk	0.05	0.14	0.00	0.19
AC Rosser	0.08	0.12	0.00	0.19
Sundre	0.08	0.04	0.00	0.12
Alston	0.10	0.00	0.00	0.10
Other	0.31	0.05	0.00	0.43
Total	3.51	1.79	0.57	5.96

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Date modified:: 2024-12-12

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Quality of western Canadian barley in 2024: Summary, growing conditions and production

Summary

Growing and harvesting conditions

Barley production in 2024

Annual production statistics

Distribution of barley classes and varieties

Distribution of malting varieties

Table 2.4 Distribution of malting barley varieties as a percentage (%) of area seeded with malting barley in western Canada in 2024^Footnote3.

Distribution of general purpose and food barley varieties

Table 2.5 Distribution of barley varieties as a percentage (%) of area seeded with general purpose and food barley in western Canada in 2024^Footnote3.

"Page details"

Quality of western Canadian barley in 2024: Summary, growing conditions and production

Summary

Growing and harvesting conditions

Barley production in 2024

Annual production statistics

Distribution of barley classes and varieties

Distribution of malting varieties

Table 2.4 Distribution of malting barley varieties as a percentage (%) of area seeded with malting barley in western Canada in 2024Footnote3.

Distribution of general purpose and food barley varieties

Table 2.5 Distribution of barley varieties as a percentage (%) of area seeded with general purpose and food barley in western Canada in 2024Footnote3.

"Page details"

Table 2.4 Distribution of malting barley varieties as a percentage (%) of area seeded with malting barley in western Canada in 2024^Footnote3.

Table 2.5 Distribution of barley varieties as a percentage (%) of area seeded with general purpose and food barley in western Canada in 2024^Footnote3.