نبذة مختصرة : Why was the work done: The malting process has long been a target for innovation to improve malt quality. The efficiency of utilisation of labour, capital, water and energy, particularly the energy intensive kilning process is a key target for maltsters to reduce the environmental footprint and costs. Similarly, water use during steeping is a priority due to scarcity of water and regulations regarding the disposal of wastewater. How was the work done: A comprehensive review of the literature was undertaken to identify prospects for improving the efficiency of the malting process. What are the main findings: The malting process involves: (i) selection of barley variety of suitable quality (protein, microbiologically sound); (ii) cleaning and grading; (iii) steeping in water with dry rests over one to two days, moisture increases from 10-13 to >40% (ideally 42-45%); (iv) germination at 12-16°C in a flow of humid air to maintain malt moisture at 42-46%; (v) kilning at between 50-85°C with hot dry air and (vi) storage and blending of malt to specification. Analysis of these steps shows that there is potential to reduce water use and discharge by ~40% with the Optisteep® system. In terms of energy, kilning uses 80-90% of all malting energy (conventionally gas), which makes kilning attractive for energy savings. Marginal energy savings can be made by lowing malt moisture to
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