Asahi is to fund the farming of regenerative barley at an equivalent scale to 90% of its total UK beer production.
A tie-up with malt supplier Boortmalt will see Asahi UK fund the production of 3,050 tonnes of regeneratively grown barley malt in 2026. This is equivalent to 100% of the pale malt used in the production of Asahi’s local British beers, including Fuller’s London Pride, Meantime Prime Pale, and Dark Star Hophead.
However, Asahi UK will not make the claim that its UK-produced beers contain 100% regeneratively farmed pale malt, as the programme does not physically segregate regenerative and non-regenerative barley once it has been harvested.
The initiative had been developed “with the aim to lower greenhouse gas emissions from barley”, Asahi UK said.
It formed part of the brewer’s “ongoing work to understand and address the environmental impact of its ingredients”, it added.
Farms participating in the scheme will be incentivised to introduce regenerative practices such as cover cropping, reduced tillage, crop rotation and reduction in artificial fertiliser use.
The practices were designed to “enhance soil fertility and structure, leading to better crop yields and water conservation, and help boost biodiversity on farms”, Asahi UK said.
“Barley is one of our most important ingredients, and we recognise the role we can play – together with our suppliers and farmers – in building more resilient and sustainable agricultural systems,” said Isabel Ashman, sustainability manager at Asahi UK.
“This partnership is about working side-by-side, learning and investing to reduce emissions in our supply chain while strengthening the future of British barley.”
Oliver Rubinstein, sustainable agriculture manager UK & Ireland at Boortmalt, added: “Regenerative agriculture offers a solution to so many of the challenges facing British malting barley growers right now, from extreme weather right through to economic volatility.”
Asahi is not the only brewer investing in regenerative agriculture to improve the sustainability credentials of its beers.
Carlsberg Britvic began using regeneratively grown barley malt in Carlsberg Pilsner in 2024, with the ambition for all of its UK beer production to transition to regenerative barley by 2031.
Last year, craft beer brand Jubel announced it was to move to regeneratively farmed barley via a tie-up with Wildfarmed.
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