Western Australian Malting Barley Variety Receival Recommendations ...

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GIWA BARLEY COUNCIL 19 August 2015

Western Australian Malting Barley Variety Receival Recommendations 2016/17 Harvest Executive Summary The transition of the Western Australian malting barley industry away from Baudin, Buloke, Gairdner and Vlamingh is nearly complete. Buloke, Gairdner and Vlamingh have been phased out as segregated varieties (the 2015/16 harvest will be their last) and the production volumes of Baudin may not be enough to support segregation opportunities after the 2016/17 harvest. It is expected that during the 2016 season the Western Australian barley industry will transition out of the food variety Hindmarsh. Bass, La Trobe and Scope CL will be the main malting barley varieties received in 2016 for export as grain and as malt, with limited segregation opportunities for Baudin and Commander. Flinders and Granger are new to the market and will continue undergoing international market development. If you do decide to adopt Flinders and/or Granger during this market development phase, your expectation should be to deliver the new malting varieties as feed until there are clearer segregation, pricing and market signals. Hectares of Hindmarsh are likely to decline in 2016 to be replaced with new malting varieties such as La Trobe that have improved agronomic and processing capacities. The malting barley variety receival recommendations made in this document are intended to be a guide for growers and consultants to help with the planning of the 2016 barley cropping program. The international market place is ever evolving and the plan presented this spring will be reviewed again in autumn next year and any changes in demand presented to growers. A key demand, however, from our customers is stable supply.

www.giwa.org.au

Western Australian Malting Barley Variety Receival Recommendations 2016/17 Harvest Table 1. Expected market usage at the 2016/17 harvest and comments about each malting barley variety when grown in WA.

Exported as Variety (indicative market size)

Bass A

Baudin A

grain (>500,000 t)

3

3

Commander A

Flinders A

Granger A

La Trobe A

Scope CL A

2

3

malt (300,000 t)

Market comments

shochu (160,000 t)

3

Bass is an approved malt barley suitable for export as grain and as malt. There is growing market demand for Bass as an alternative to Baudin. Bass is not suitable for the manufacture of shochu in Japan. Target production zones in 2016 are Kwinana, Albany and Esperance Port Zones.

3

Baudin is the ‘market leader’ with strong international market demand for export as both grain and malt, as well as being accepted for shochu production in Japan. The declining production of Baudin, primarily due to its susceptibility to leaf diseases, will limit segregation opportunities. Target production zones in 2016 are Kwinana, Albany and Esperance Port Zones.

3

3

Commander is being used by the domestic market to export as malt. There is increased demand for Commander to cover the loss of Gairdner and Vlamingh as segregated varieties. Commander is a preferred malting variety for the Western Australian craft brewing industry. Target production zone in 2016 is Kwinana Port Zone.

3

Flinders is new to the market having been accredited in March 2015. Flinders is being assessed for export as grain and as malt. Malt grade grain accumulated at the 2015/16 harvest will be used for further international market development. Limited segregation opportunities are to be expected until full market acceptance is achieved. Target production zones in 2016 are Kwinana, Albany and Esperance Port Zones.

3

Granger is in the early stages of international market development. 2016 will be the first opportunity for international customers to assess the malting performance of this variety. Being assessed for export as grain. Not being assessed for export as malt or for shochu. Target production zones in 2016 are Albany and Esperance Port Zones.

3

3

With its accreditation as a malt barley, La Trobe is suitable for export as grain and as malt. La Trobe is being assessed for its suitability in the manufacture of shochu in Japan. Do not mix La Trobe grain with Hindmarsh grain or vice versa at seeding or at harvest. Target production zones in 2016 are Geraldton, Kwinana, Albany and Esperance Port Zones.

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Scope CL is suitable for export as grain and as malt but it is not suitable for the manufacture of shochu in Japan. Scope CL is replacing Buloke. Do not mix Scope CL grain with Buloke grain or vice versa at seeding or at harvest. Do not use imi-herbicides other than Intervix® on Scope CL. Target production zones in 2016 are Geraldton, Kwinana and Albany Port Zones.

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Western Australian Malting Barley Variety Receival Recommendations 2016/17 Harvest

GIWA BARLEY COUNCIL

Variety Specific Recommendations Each malting barley variety grown in Western Australia has unique and different malting attributes. As a consequence brewers purchase varieties subject to their availability, their price, the style of beer they produce and the level of adjunct used in their brewing recipe. This document contains information outlining market usage and demand by industry sector (Tables 1 and 2) and market demand by port zone (Table 3) as well as comments on each of the malting varieties to be segregated. Traders and exporters of Western Australian barley and malt are keen to rationalise the number of varieties grown and segregated within Western Australia. This sentiment is strongly echoed by growers as well. There are strong benefits for growing and segregating fewer malting varieties, namely the ease of logistics and stronger demand from the trade who are currently unwilling to risk buying small, unsaleable parcels. The long term aim of the Western Australian barley industry is to rationalise the number of varieties segregated to two major malting varieties per port zone, with limited segregations on offer for some minor, new or niche malting varieties. The purpose of this aim is to maximise the opportunities for growers and maximise the opportunities for the trade. This aim however may not be achievable in all port zones and is strongly influenced by the accredited varieties available for planting, their international market demand and production factors (ie. disease, receival specifications) that may influence the viability of varieties in the different port zones. In 2016 there will be three widely grown malting varieties (Bass, La Trobe and Scope CL), smaller areas of Baudin, Commander, Flinders and Granger, and it is anticipated that the acreage of the food variety Hindmarsh will decline. Growers should use the following market signals to assist them when deciding on which malt / food variety or varieties to sow in 2016. Market demand, pricing signals and the location of segregations should be considered in partnership with the agronomic management required and the risk associated with delivering malt / food grade barley when determining how much area to plant to each malt / food variety. It is important that growers accurately tell storage and handling companies which malt or food variety/ies they are growing (and how much area) when returning their grower estimate forms, as they assist with the planning of segregations. Growers should be aware that segregations will not be offered in all port zones for all malting varieties, even if there is an agronomic fit for a malting variety in the area. For some malting varieties only limited services will be offered. Growers should only grow the newly accredited malting varieties with the intention of delivering them into feed barley segregations until there are clearer segregation, pricing and market demand signals. Growers who have a preference for a particular malting variety that is not received in their area will need to look at transporting the grain to sites where that variety is accepted if they are aiming to receive a premium for that grain. In any port zone, however, if there is sufficient volume grown, segregation opportunities will be considered. It is important to be aware that GIWA has no control or influence on the actual segregations available in any port zone. Growers and consultants also need to be aware that there is no guarantee that every international market will pay a premium for an accredited malting variety compared to a non-accredited variety. Accreditation as a malt variety does not guarantee market success, but many international markets place value on the accreditation provided by Barley Australia. The following information is a summary of the market comment for each of the seven malting varieties and one food variety that the GIWA Barley Council expects to be segregated in Western Australia for the 2016/17 harvest.

Bass A Bass is an ACCEPTABLE variety for export as grain and as malt. Bass is now an approved malt barley suitable for export as grain and as malt, but is not suitable for the manufacture of shochu in Japan. There is increasing market demand for Bass as an alternative to Baudin where high levels of adjuncts are used in the brewing process. At the time of release the higher levels of dimethyl sulphide (DMS) in Bass malt were of concern to the malting and brewing industry. In general, whilst the malting industry has been able to adjust processing conditions to control DMS levels, this trait remains a point of differentiation between Baudin and Bass amongst our malting and brewing customers. Target production zones in 2016 – Kwinana, Albany and Esperance Port Zones.

Baudin A Baudin is a PREFERRED variety for export as grain, as malt and as a shochu barley. Baudin is regarded as the ‘market leader’ for markets in China, south-east Asian and Japan which have a high adjunct use in the brewing process. It is also a preferred variety in Japan for the manufacture of the distilled, white spirit shochu. Despite the high market demand (as reflected in the current premium offered by the trade) production of Baudin is declining rapidly due to the availability of varieties with improved resistance to leaf diseases and a higher grain yield. This decline in production will limit the segregations offered in 2016. Baudin is likely to be phased out as a common malt variety within two – three years. Target production zones in 2016 – Kwinana, Albany and Esperance Port Zones.

Commander A Commander is an ACCEPTABLE variety for export as grain and as malt. There is demand for Commander from the domestic market to export as malt. Commander is a replacement for Gairdner and Vlamingh which will no longer be segregated in Western Australia (after 2015/16 harvest). There is also demand for Commander malt, albeit small, from the craft brewers of Western Australia. There is a need for increased production of Commander in the Kwinana Port Zone to meet the demand from the domestic market. Commander is also suitable for export as grain but until production volumes are surplus to the domestic demand the export of grain is unlikely to occur. Segregation opportunities are likely to be limited due to the low, current production volume. Target production zone in 2016 – Kwinana Port Zone.

Western Australian Malting Barley Variety Receival Recommendations 2016/17 Harvest

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Variety Specific Recommendations Flinders A Flinders is BEING ASSESSED as a variety for export as grain and as malt. Flinders is a new malting variety to the market being targeted at the medium and high rainfall areas of Western Australia. Flinders was accredited by Barley Australia in March 2015. Barley Australia expects Flinders to be well suited to markets where starch-adjunct brewing is undertaken. Following its accreditation a limited volume of grain from the 2014 harvest was used for international market development during 2015. Limited feedback is expected to be available before seeding in 2016. A more comprehensive international market reaction will not be known until the latter half of 2016 following the malting and brewing of the 2015 harvested crop. Before planting any seed, Flinders growers should talk to their preferred grain acquirer regarding premiums and segregation opportunities that may be available for Flinders at the 2016/17 harvest. Target production zones in 2016 – Kwinana, Albany and Esperance Port Zones.

Granger A Granger is BEING ASSESSED as a variety for export as grain. Granger is a new malting variety to the market being targeted at the medium and high rainfall areas of Western Australia. Granger was accredited by Barley Australia in March 2014. Unfortunately marketable tonnages of Granger were not accumulated from the 2014/15 harvest and therefore no international market development could occur during 2015. 2016 will therefore be the first opportunity for international customers to assess the malting performance of this variety when grown in Western Australia. International market feedback from the 2015/16 harvest is unlikely before seeding in 2016. Some feedback is expected to be available in the middle to latter half of 2016. Feedback from Granger grown in northern NSW and southern Queensland and malted in Brisbane will provide useful Australian information on the market potential of Granger barley. Even though Granger is being assessed by the domestic brewing market in north-eastern Australia, there is no current demand for its export as malt from Western Australia. Before planting any seed, Granger growers should talk to their preferred grain acquirer regarding premiums and segregation opportunities that may be available for Granger at the 2016/17 harvest. Target production zones in 2016 – Albany and Esperance Port Zones.

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Hindmarsh A Hindmarsh is not a malting variety but is segregated as a food grade variety (BFOD1). The 2016/17 harvest is expected to be the last harvest that Hindmarsh will be segregated as a food variety in the Geraldton, Kwinana, Albany and Esperance Port Zones. The area sown to Hindmarsh has now peaked at around 35% of the area sown to barley in Western Australia. Even though Hindmarsh has established itself as a marketable variety into the Chinese market as a mid-range malting barley and used in Japan to manufacture the distilled white spirit shochu Hindmarsh is likely to start being phased out during 2016. This will provide segregation opportunities for varieties with improved malting characteristics (ie. Bass, Flinders, Granger, La Trobe and Scope CL). Despite the agronomic similarities between the varieties, Barley Australia and the GIWA Barley Council do not support the co-binning of food grade Hindmarsh and malt grade La Trobe. The Australian barley industry works hard to uphold our malt variety traits to the end customer and the reputation and integrity of Australian malt barley from co-binning cannot in any way be condoned. It is important that growers do not ruin the integrity of Hindmarsh barley food stacks by contaminating them with La Trobe barley. Correct variety declaration is a legal requirement under the Plant Breeders Rights Act and mis-declaration is a breach of the Bulk Handlers Act. Genetic tests can distinguish between Hindmarsh and La Trobe. Food segregation (BFOD1) opportunities are likely in all four port zones in 2016.

Western Australian Malting Barley Variety Receival Recommendations 2016/17 Harvest

GIWA BARLEY COUNCIL

Variety Specific Recommendations La Trobe A

Scope CL A

La Trobe is an ACCEPTABLE variety for export as grain and as malt and is BEING ASSESSED for export as a shochu barley. La Trobe shares many of the same agronomic characteristics observed in Hindmarsh. However, commercial malting and brewing trials conducted through Barley Australia have identified quality improvements in La Trobe compared to Hindmarsh, allowing the accreditation of La Trobe as a malt barley. Barley Australia has indicated that La Trobe is best suited to brewers seeking malt with a higher Kolbach Index. La Trobe, like Hindmarsh, is rated as VS (very susceptible) to smut. The best way to keep smut out of your La Trobe crop is to buy in smut free seed and put in place a management plan for smut control. Best practice management involves evenly treating every La Trobe seed for sowing with a good quality smuticide (ie. EverGol® Prime, Vibrance® and Jockey® + Raxil® T). Once smut has contaminated seed stocks, it can take several years of good seed husbandry to eliminate this problem, so start early to reduce the risk. Despite the agronomic similarities between the varieties, Barley Australia and the GIWA Barley Council do not support the co-binning of malt grade La Trobe and food grade Hindmarsh. The Australian barley industry works hard to develop and promote malting barley and the risk to the reputation and integrity of Australian malt barley from co-binning cannot in any way be condoned. It is important that growers do not ruin the integrity of La Trobe malt stacks by contaminating them with Hindmarsh barley. Correct variety declaration is a legal requirement under the Plant Breeders Rights Act and mis-declaration is a breach of the Bulk Handlers Act. Genetic tests can distinguish between La Trobe and Hindmarsh. Target production zones – Geraldton, Kwinana, Albany and Esperance Port Zones.

Scope CL is an ACCEPTABLE variety for export as grain and as malt. Scope CL is now approved by our international grain and malt customers. Scope CL is an agronomic replacement for Buloke but with the added advantage of in-crop brome and barley grass control. Scope CL is registered for use with the herbicide Intervix®. Do not use other imi-herbicides on Scope CL. Japan has recently increased its surveillance protocols for all barley shipments from Australia (source: GRDC GroundCover May-June 2014) following the detection in market surveillance samples of residues of imazapyr and imazapic above both the Japanese import tolerances and the Australian standards. An important consideration when growing Scope CL is the cost of managing leaf diseases like net blotch, particularly when sowing Scope CL as a plant back option onto Intervix® sprayed Scope CL in the previous year. When approved in Australia the new seed fungicide Systiva® will certainly help reduce epidemics of net blotch in Scope CL sown into Scope CL stubble, but any system that relies entirely on fungicides is not sustainable in the long term. Despite the agronomic similarities between the varieties, Barley Australia and the GIWA Barley Council do not support the co-binning of malt grade Scope CL and Buloke. The Australian barley industry works hard to uphold our malt variety traits to the end customer and the reputation and integrity of Australian malt barley from co-binning cannot in any way be condoned. It is important that growers do not ruin the integrity of Scope CL malt stacks by contaminating them with Buloke barley. Correct variety declaration is a legal requirement under the Plant Breeders Rights Act and mis-declaration is a breach of the Bulk Handlers Act. Genetic tests can distinguish between Scope CL and Buloke. Target production zones in 2016 – Geraldton, Kwinana and Albany Port Zones.

Western Australian Malting Barley Variety Receival Recommendations 2016/17 Harvest

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Variety Specific Recommendations Varieties undergoing malting and brewing accreditation The varieties currently undergoing the Barley Australia malting and brewing accreditation process can be found on the Barley Australia website: barleyaustralia.com.au. Of the varieties listed: • Compass (tested as WI4593, breeder – University of Adelaide), • IGB1334T (breeder – InterGrain), and • Litmus (tested as WABAR2625, breeder – InterGrain) are the most relevant to Western Australia. Compass and Litmus are in Stage 1 testing in 2015. Subject to satisfactory malting and brewing performance malt accreditation of Compass and Litmus could occur in autumn 2017. Stage 1 testing for IGB1334T will not commence until 2016. Subject to satisfactory malting and brewing performance malt accreditation of IGB1334T could occur in autumn 2018. Compass (County/Commander//Commander) is derived from Commander with improvements in grain plumpness, grain yield and agronomic characteristics over Commander. Seed of Compass will again be available from SeedNet Authorised agents for sowing as a feed barley in 2016. Barley NVT data (20122014) suggests that the grain yield of Compass is comparable to Hindmarsh and La Trobe in Western Australia. IGB1334T is an imi-tolerant barley with very similar grain quality, grain yield and agronomic characteristics as La Trobe. Seed of IGB1334T is available from Syngenta SeedGro Partners for sowing as a feed barley in 2016. Litmus (WB229/2*Baudin//WABAR2238) is an early maturing barley suited to soils with a low soil pH and a high aluminium concentration. Seed was released in 2014 and Litmus is available for sowing as a feed barley. Litmus grain has the potential to display blue aleurone. There is currently nil tolerance of blue aleurone in malt barley and a tolerance of 1 in 100 kernels in feed barley in both the WA and GTA barley receival standards. As a consequence its future as a commercial variety is dependent on current industry deliberations over the inclusion or exclusion of a blue aleurone standard on delivery. Until Compass, IGB1334T and Litmus have completed the malting and brewing accreditation scheme administered by Barley Australia they should be considered as feed barley varieties. The GIWA Barley Council recommendations only provide segregation and market demand guidance for varieties accredited by Barley Australia and the segregation of varieties before their accreditation does not form part of the GIWA Barley Council recommendations to growers. However, niche segregations may be available for new varieties undergoing accreditation specifically for market development purposes. The GIWA Barley Council is supportive of simultaneous international market development by the breeder alongside the malt and brewing accreditation scheme of Barley Australia. For further information about Compass, IGB1334T and Litmus talk to the relevant breeder to determine their agronomic characteristics, potential market fit and seed availability. It is important to note that accreditation as a malt variety by Barley Australia does not guarantee segregation or customers domestically or internationally. Unless a new malt variety out-performs established malting varieties in both agronomic and processing capacities the trade will be reluctant to be involved in or encourage its international promotion.

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Other varieties In August 2014 and again in May 2015 the GIWA Barley Council released market demand information to the barley supply chain in Western Australia indicating that the malting varieties Buloke, Gairdner and Vlamingh were being phased out. They were being phased out as segregated varieties to make room for newer malting varieties with improved agronomic and processing capacities. As a consequence the 2015/16 harvest is the last harvest that Buloke, Gairdner and Vlamingh will be segregated as common varieties in Western Australia. Production of those varieties in 2016 will be directed into feed stacks unless niche opportunities are created for supply to the domestic market for export as malt. Table 2. Market acceptance (preferred, acceptable, being assessed or no demand) and trend (increasing, stable or decreasing) in market demand of accredited malting barley varieties grown in Western Australia for 2016/17 harvest.

PREFERRED

Variety is first choice for buyers for this market segment.

ACCEPTABLE

Variety purchased as an alternative to a PREFERRED variety. Depending on supply it may be priced at a discount to a PREFERRED variety.

Being assessed

Variety is undergoing international market development. This does not imply that there will be future market demand.

No demand

No buyer for this variety for this market segment.

Market type (market size)

Export as grain (> 500,000 t)

Export as malt (300,000 t)

Shochu (160,000 t)

Bass A

PREFERRED (increasing)

ACCEPTABLE (increasing)

No demand

Baudin A

PREFERRED (stable)

PREFERRED (stable)

PREFERRED (stable)

Commander A

ACCEPTABLE (stable)

PREFERRED (increasing)

No demand

Flinders A

Being assessed

Being assessed

No demand

Granger A

Being assessed

No demand

No demand

La Trobe A

ACCEPTABLE (increasing)

ACCEPTABLE (increasing)

Being assessed

Scope CL A

ACCEPTABLE (increasing)

ACCEPTABLE (increasing)

No demand

Note: Market size – Volumes in brackets are indicative market size only and vary considerably from year to year. They are intended to show differences in market demand and how this may influence demand for different varieties and demand by port zone.

Western Australian Malting Barley Variety Receival Recommendations 2016/17 Harvest

GIWA BARLEY COUNCIL

Port Zone Recommendations Table 3. Western Australian malting barley industry variety receival by Port Zone recommendations (YES, limited or NO) for 2016/17 harvest.

YES

Target production zone for this variety.

Limited

Limited segregations likely due to limited market demand, low production volume and/or this is a new variety being evaluated for international market acceptance.

NO

Trade not looking to accumulate this variety in this port zone.

Port Zone Geraldton Kwinana Albany Esperance (~% of total ~5% ~40% ~30% ~25% barley area) Western Eastern Northern Southern YES YES YES YES NO NO Bass A Limited Limited Limited Limited NO NO Baudin A Limited NO NO NO NO NO Commander A Limited Limited Limited Limited NO NO Flinders A Limited Limited Limited NO NO NO Granger A Limited YES YES YES YES YES La Trobe A YES YES YES YES YES NO Scope CL A Growers should be aware that segregations are ultimately determined by the volume of a variety or grade grown in a particular area. GIWA has no control or influence on the actual segregations available in any port zone. The recommendations and advice provided in this document represent market signals.

Geraldton Port Zone Market opportunity – export as grain. Target varieties – Scope CL with limited segregations for La Trobe and phasing out segregations for Hindmarsh.

Detail Grain delivered in the Geraldton Port Zone is exported as grain. Four varieties accounted for 4 out of every 5 barley ha sown in the Geraldton Port Zone in both 2013 and 2014. Scope CL replaced Hindmarsh as the most popular variety in 2014. Other important varieties in 2014 were Buloke and the feed variety Yagan. In 2015, Scope CL and Hindmarsh are likely to occupy 2 in every 3 barley ha, with Scope CL expected to be twice as popular as Hindmarsh. The decline of Buloke is expected to continue with a rise in the plantings of La Trobe. As we move into 2016 it is predicted that Scope CL, Hindmarsh and La Trobe will be the most widely sown segregated varieties in this port zone, with Scope CL the dominant variety. Growers are encouraged to grow only one malting variety in this port zone to increase the chances of a segregation. Due to the low production base it is difficult for industry to provide storage and handling facilities for more than one malting variety. The most popular malting variety at the moment is Scope CL. If you choose to grow the food variety Hindmarsh or the malt variety La Trobe then you will need to consider your delivery and marketing options.

Kwinana Port Zone Market opportunity – export as grain, as malt and for shochu. Target varieties – Bass, La Trobe and Scope CL with limited segregations for Baudin, Commander and Flinders and phasing out segregations for Hindmarsh.

Detail The bulk of the grain delivered in the Kwinana Port Zone is either converted into malt in Perth and exported as malt or exported as grain for shochu production in Japan. Only a small proportion of the grain received is exported as grain to China and south-east Asia. As a consequence, end-users (maltsters and grain acquirers) encourage growers to sow only those varieties used by the trade. Preferred varieties from the domestic malting market include Baudin and Commander. Bass, La Trobe and Scope CL are also exported as grain and as malt, with Flinders under evaluation. The varietal composition in the Kwinana Port Zone has changed rapidly since 2011. In 2011, Buloke, Baudin and Vlamingh (in decreasing order) accounted for nearly 3 in every 4 barley ha. By 2014, those same 3 barley ha were now sown to Hindmarsh, Scope CL and Buloke (in decreasing order) with Buloke now half as popular as it was in 2011. In 2015 it is expected that Scope CL will be the most popular variety followed by Hindmarsh and then Bass. Those three varieties are likely to occupy 3 in every 4 barley ha sown. As we move into 2016, La Trobe is predicted to join Scope CL, Hindmarsh and Bass as a major varieties in this port zone. Higher Rainfall Areas (> 350 mm annual rainfall) Due to the close proximity to the malting barley market in Perth, the higher rainfall areas of the Kwinana Port Zone have the greatest number of malting barley variety choices available to growers. This also poses issues for CBH in matching receival points to variety production. In 2016, production of Bass, Commander, La Trobe and Scope CL is encouraged and Baudin, to a lesser extent, only where cost effective disease management plans can be implemented. There is strong interest in Flinders from the domestic market to export as malt and from the trade for export as grain. There is currently no domestic or international demand for Granger from this port zone. Growers with Flinders and Granger seed should be cautious however in planting too much area to those varieties until there are clearer segregation, pricing and market demand signals, or budget on delivering those varieties into feed stacks. Lower Rainfall Areas (< 350 mm annual rainfall) Barley sown in the lower rainfall area will be dominated by Hindmarsh and Scope CL with the yield advantage of Hindmarsh and the weed management advantage of Scope CL being the primary drivers for their adoption. Production of La Trobe is encouraged. 2016 will also be an opportunity to evaluate the agronomic value of Compass and IGB1334T, feed varieties undergoing malt evaluation by Barley Australia.

Western Australian Malting Barley Variety Receival Recommendations 2016/17 Harvest

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GIWA BARLEY COUNCIL

Port Zone Recommendations Albany Port Zone

Esperance Port Zone

Market opportunity – export as grain and as malt (via domestic maltsters). Target varieties – Bass, La Trobe and Scope CL with limited segregations for Baudin, Granger and Flinders and phasing out segregations for Hindmarsh.

Market opportunity – export as grain. Target varieties – Bass and La Trobe with limited segregations for Baudin, Granger and Flinders and phasing out segregations for Hindmarsh.

Detail Grain delivered in the Albany Port Zone is primarily exported as grain. Some grain is also sent to Perth and converted into malt, before being exported as malt. Hindmarsh was again the most popular variety in this port zone in 2014, but instead of being shadowed by Buloke (which was the most popular in 2012), Buloke, Bass and Scope CL were as equally as popular as each other. The combined area of Buloke, Bass and Scope CL however was similar to the total area sown to Hindmarsh. In 2015 the proportion of the barley area sown to Hindmarsh is expected to be similar to 2014, with an increase in the popularity of Bass and Scope CL and a decline in the popularity of Buloke. In 2016 La Trobe is expected to join Hindmarsh, Bass and Scope CL as the major varieties sown in this port zone. The price premium being offered for Baudin is encouraging some farmers to continue growing Baudin as there are still export opportunities for Baudin barley. Growers need to account for the high cost of managing leaf diseases in Baudin. The use of fungicides to keep Baudin green is not a long term solution and may contribute to the development of fungicide resistance. Growers should therefore be very strategic in where and how they grow Baudin. It is expected that Baudin will be phased out as a segregated variety over the next two – three years. The popularity of Flinders and Granger is expected to rise on the back of their strong agronomic performance and in particular their resistance to powdery mildew and barley leaf rust. Segregation opportunities, however, are expected to be limited at the 2016/17 harvest as they are in the early stages of their international market development.

Detail Grain delivered in the Esperance Port Zone is exported as grain. Growers are rapidly dropping varieties with poor disease resistance (with a focus on powdery mildew and barley leaf rust) and low yield potential. In 2011, Baudin was the most popular variety occupying 40% of the Esperance barley area. It has been quickly displaced by Hindmarsh. In 2014 Hindmarsh dominated production, being 4 times more popular than Bass, 5 times more popular than Gairdner and 6 times more popular than Baudin. Hindmarsh was sown on 1 in every 2 barley ha in 2014, with Bass the next most popular variety in this port zone. In 2015, Hindmarsh is expected to be the dominant variety followed by Bass, Baudin and then Gairdner. Whilst dropping back slightly the area sown to Hindmarsh in 2015 will likely be twice the combined area sown to Bass, Baudin and Gairdner. The popularity of Hindmarsh has peaked and it is expected that growers will switch to La Trobe and seriously evaluate Flinders and Granger in the 2016 cropping season (subject to their performance in 2015). There are still export opportunities for Baudin barley but growers need to account for the high cost of managing leaf diseases in Baudin. The use of fungicides to keep Baudin green is not a long term solution and may contribute to the development of fungicide resistance. Growers should therefore be very strategic in where and how they grow Baudin. Baudin is being phased out over the next two – three years. As Clearfield® technology has had a lower uptake in the Esperance Port Zone, the large swing to Scope CL observed in the other three Port Zones is not evident here. Grower estimates from 2013 indicated that Buloke was twice as popular as Scope CL. This was reversed in 2014 with Scope CL becoming slightly more popular than Buloke, but between them they still account for less than 1 in every 10 barley ha in this port zone. As production in excess of 15,000 t is generally required to support the segregation of a variety, the industry does not consider the segregation of Scope CL to be a viable option in the Esperance Port Zones. Production of Scope CL for malt purposes in this port zone is discouraged. Production of Commander is discouraged in this port zone for 2016.

Non-Coastal Northern Area Grain produced in the non-coastal part of the Albany Port Zone is primarily exported as grain to international customers. In years where there is a shortage of quality malting barley in the Kwinana Port Zone, some of the grain received in the northern part of the port is delivered to Perth for malting. This is then exported as malt. Production of Bass, La Trobe and Scope CL is encouraged and Baudin, to a lesser extent, only where cost effective disease management plans can be implemented. Commander could be considered for delivery north to the Kwinana Port Zone. Flinders and Granger are new options that are worth evaluating, bearing in the mind that segregations will be limited whilst they are introduced to the international market. Coastal Southern Area Grain produced in the coastal part of the Albany Port Zone is exported as grain to international customers and not used domestically. Production risk from powdery mildew and barley leaf rust is high in this area and varieties with improved genetic resistance to those diseases are critical. The greatest demand will be for Bass and Baudin, to a lesser extent for La Trobe and with limited segregation opportunities for Flinders and Granger. Production of Commander and Scope CL is discouraged in this part of the port zone.

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Grain Industry Association of Western Australia (GIWA) PO Box 1081 BENTLEY DC WA 6983 Phone: 08 6262 2128 Email: [email protected] Web: www.giwa.org.au

Western Australian Malting Barley Variety Receival Recommendations 2016/17 Harvest