The Colorado Micromalting Project Fact Sheet
Thursday, July 2, 1998
WHAT: A yearlong effort led by a Colorado State University team
to determine the economic viability of growing high-quality,
two-row pale barley and wheat in the San Luis Valley; build and
operate a small-scale, environmentally responsible micromalting
plant near growers; and sell malt at competitive prices to
Colorado's microbreweries, particularly the 30 largest.
WHERE: Research and coordination have been conducted at Colorado
State in Fort Collins, and on-site in the San Luis Valley of
south-central Colorado. A final presentation was made to brewers,
growers and potential investors during the Colorado Brewer's
Festival June 27-28 in Fort Collins.
WHY (Part I): Malt (germinated and roasted grain) is mixed with
yeast, water and hops to make beer and ale. It is crucial to the
taste and flavor of beer. Colorado's microbrewers produce about
250,000 barrels annually. Most microbrewed beer or ale starts
with between 60 and 80 percent two-row pale barley malt; wheat
beers add that grain in the form of wheat malt in addition.
Colorado brewers thus use some 12.5 million pounds (6,250 tons)
of malt annually.
San Luis Valley growers offer irrigated, consistently
high-quality barley and wheat for beermaking. A micromalting
plant (producing about 6,600 tons of malt annually) in the valley
could build on the region's economic base and provide malt less
expensively than West Coast and Canadian suppliers, whose product
costs include approximately 35 percent for transportation.
Colorado microbrewers could gain access to high-quality malt at
very competitive costs.
Initial estimates prepared by Colorado State suggest a
return on investment for the plant, estimated to cost $5 million
dollars, would average 15-20 percent over the plant's 20-year
life.
WHY (Part II): Brewing raw materials grown in the San Luis
Valley, malted in the San Luis Valley and used by Colorado
microbrewers would keep money in the state.
Using an economic multiplier of two, a conservative estimate
of additonal funding the project would put into circulation,
suggests $5 million would be added to the state's economy in
addition to the $5 million expenditure for the plant. A majority
of that money will remain in the San Luis Valley, broadening the
area's agriculture-based economy.
WHO: The project involved an interdisciplinary team of experts
from Colorado State University, representatives of Colorado's
microbreweries and officials from various governmental and
non-governmental agencies.
Colorado State participants:
* Lee Gray, chair of Colorado State's agricultural and
resource economics department; Dawn Thilmany, assistant
professor; Eric Scorsone, doctoral student and economist, Office
of State Planning and Budget; and other departmental faculty;
* Duane Johnson, associate professor of soil and crop
sciences, who helped advise growers on barley and wheat strains;
* Lee Sommers, director of Colorado State's agricultural
experiment station;
* Merle Dillon, a small crops specialist with Colorado
State's Agricultural Extension Service in the San Luis Valley.
Steering committee of Colorado microbrewers:
* Phil Benstein, New Belgium Brewing Co., Fort Collins;
* Doug Odell of Odell's Brewing Co., Fort Collins;
*Todd Usry of Breckenridge Brewing Co., Breckenridge;
* Eric Warner of Broadway Brewing Co., Denver; and
* David Zuckerman of Rockies Brewing Co., Boulder.
Representatives of governmental and other organizations
advising on the project:
* David Edgar, director, Institute of Brewing Studies,
Boulder;
* Dale Edwards, Alamosa County extension director;
* Roland Mower, Fort Collins Economic Development Corp.; and
* Jim Rubingh, Markets/Colorado Agriculture.
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