SABMiller promoting barley farming

SABMiller India, a leading brewer with brands such as Foster's, has roped in nearly 6,000 farmers across 13,000 acres for contract farming of barley. Besides crop improvement, the move by the brewing major is aimed at strengthening its backward integrations.

"Barley, a critical component for the beer industry, has always been an orphan crop in India. We started this exercise not just for backward linkages but also to create a good quality yield," SABMiller Director for Corporate Affairs, Sundeep Kumar, told Business Line.

Growth trajectory

Observing that the market for beer in India is on a growth trajectory with a CAGR of 15-18 per cent annually, he said the demand for malting barley is gaining ground.

"We believe that the increased beer production has a potential to benefit over 10 lakh farmers. The total barley production in India stands at 1.25 million tonnes, out of which 0.35 million tonnes is used for malt and only 0.20 million tonnes is used by the beer industry," he said.