More Sustainability through Malt

Malt comes from grains grown in the nature and ends up as drinks and foods enjoyed by people. Therefore, we are dependent on nature and the ecosystem services it provides for the value chain.

In fact, malt has a major part to play in ensuring and increasing sustainability in the entire value chain, from field to glass.

By encouraging regenerative farming practices, continuously improving energy and water efficiency in the malting process, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and leading innovation on new types of malts, we are advocating for more sustainability through malt.

To be successful in our sustainability goals, we need to work holistically as a value chain. This means supporting our farmers, partners and customers in their respective sustainability journeys. As the science around sustainability advances, we also need to be agile: to take on board new information and adjust our actions and targets accordingly.

Together, we can create more sustainability through malt.

Sustainability Projects

We are actively contributing to sustainable malt production. We partner in projects to promote regenerative agriculture, reduce greenhouse-gas emissions, and improve water- and energy-efficiency throughout the entire value chain.

Sustainability through diverse farming

A new direction for Finnish crop production

 

Introduction

The “Sustainability through Diverse Farming” project develops knowledge to support a significant advancement in Finnish arable crop cultivation. The initiative highlights the role of crop diversity in achieving sustainable crop production. Given the limited knowledge of various cropping practices, particularly in boreal conditions, the project’s efforts to develop new data and understanding are both timely and essential. This large-scale sustainable crop production project is a collaborative endeavor involving research institute Luke, various companies, and agricultural interest organizations MTK and SLC.

 

Our Role and Commitment

As one of the key funders and a direct contractor of malting barley, Viking Malt plays an integral role in supporting the project’s objectives. Viking Malt’s commitment to sustainability and innovation in crop production aligns well with the project’s goals. By investing in research and development, Viking Malt helps to ensure that sustainable farming practices can be implemented, ultimately contributing to the overall success and impact of the project.

 

Key Components of the Project

Status of crop rotations

The project began with a thorough examination of the current state of contractual farms, comparing them with other similar farms in the same region. The analyses focus on four main themes: crop rotations, pre-crops, cover crops, and farmers’ yield gaps.

Crop rotation experiment and on-farm trials

The core of the project is a 5-year-long crop rotation experiment, complemented with on-farm trials conducted by contractual farms. The rotations will include a variety of crops such as spring and winter cereals, oil crops, legumes, and other seed crops. The research will emphasize carbon sequestering and maximizing the use of legumes. Additionally, gluten-free crops will be studied as part of diversified food crop production. Observations and analyses will be carried out on soil fertility, carbon content, overwintering crops, plant pest occurrences, and nitrogen use. Mixed intercropping systems will also be tested in farmers’ fields.

Modelling environmental impacts and profitability

The project aims to model how crop diversity affects the environmental impacts and profitability of farming. This will be achieved by combining dynamic agroecological models of farming systems, life cycle assessments, and economic analyses of alternative cropping systems. The methodological developments will allow for a comprehensive assessment of the environmental and economic impacts of diverse farming systems.

Communication and dissemination

The project emphasizes strong cooperation with farmers, facilitating a two-way transfer of knowledge and experience through annual field days and free webinars. It also aims to provide recommendations for political decision-makers and publish research results in peer-reviewed scientific journals. The dissemination of information will be enhanced through partnerships with appropriate company partners, including Viking Malt.

 

Funding and timetable

The project is funded by Luke, Viking Malt, Anora, Raisio, Olvi, Sinebrychoff, MTK, and SLC. It commenced in June 2023 and is scheduled to be finalized in August 2029.

 

Contact Information

For more information, please contact:

  • Ari Rajala, Group Manager, ari.a.rajala@luke.fi
  • Annika Wilhelmson, Viking Malt

Optimizing nitrogen strategies for malting barley

 

Introduction

Viking Malt is proud to be a key participant in a pioneering research project aimed at optimizing nitrogen strategies in conventional and regenerative agriculture malting barley production. This collaborative effort, involving Yara and Carlsberg, seeks to enhance sustainable barley production by developing a deeper understanding of the differences between regenerative and conventional practices.

 

Project Objectives

The primary objective of this project is to identify and implement optimal nitrogen strategies that will improve the yield and quality of malting barley. By exploring both conventional and regenerative agriculture methods, we aim to develop best practices that can be adopted widely within the industry.

 

Our Role and Responsibilities

As a business buying and processing over 700 000 tons of malting barley annually, Viking Malt will share insights and expertise in barley quality, to shape the final deliverables.  In addition, we are tasked with the carbon footprint calculation (CFP) of the malted barley, ensuring that our production processes are environmentally sustainable.

 

Project Timeline

In the first year, we will focus on designing and running comprehensive field trials in Denmark and Finland. These trials will provide the necessary data to evaluate different nitrogen strategies and their impact on barley production. The second year will be dedicated to analyzing the results from the field trials.

 

Looking Ahead

Viking Malt is excited to take part in this research project. Our dedication to sustainability and excellence in malting barley production drives us to continually seek out new methods and strategies that benefit both the industry and the environment.

Viking Malt joins Lower Silesia 360°: advancing regenerative agriculture in Poland

Driving sustainable malting barley production through collaboration and innovation

 

Introduction

Viking Malt is participating in the Lower Silesia 360° initiative, one of Poland’s largest regenerative agriculture projects, launched on October 29, 2025. This pioneering effort, led by EIT Food and supported by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), aims to support farmers in Lower Silesia as they transition to more sustainable farming practices, focusing on key crops such as malting barley, rapeseed, wheat, and sugar beets.

 

Project Objectives

The Lower Silesia 360° project is designed to accelerate the adoption of regenerative agricultural methods, with a strong emphasis on improving soil health, boosting biodiversity, enhancing carbon sequestration, and strengthening farmer livelihoods. As a key partner Viking Malt will help drive this transition and ensure the long-term resilience of agricultural supply chains in the region.

 

Our Role and Commitment

Viking Malt brings its extensive expertise in malting barley production to the project, collaborating directly with local farmers and stakeholders. Our team will be closely involved in the implementation of regenerative practices, supporting the development of a harmonized Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) platform to accurately track environmental outcomes such as soil health, biodiversity, and greenhouse gas emissions. This data-driven approach will inform best practices for sustainable agriculture across Europe.

 

Looking Ahead

The project will run from 2025 to 2028, with annual reporting and a comprehensive final report in 2029. Viking Malt is committed to sharing insights and outcomes from this journey, helping pave the way for scalable, regenerative agriculture practices in Poland and beyond. Together with EIT Food, Foodvalley NL, and our fellow partners, we are shaping a more sustainable future.

Fit for the Future

Sustainability is strategically integrated into our values and operations. Committing to UN compacts, ISO standards, and other clearly defined parameters places appropriate pressure on us to show concrete progress. By collaborating with our customers, our suppliers, and all our partners on increasing sustainability throughout the entire value chain, we are set to create an industry fit for the future.

42%

reduction in our Scope 1+2 CO₂ emissions by 2030

100%

FSA certified barley by 2030​

In accordance to the UN-led global Science Based Targets, we are committed to reducing our greenhouse gas emissions in line with the 1.5°C temperature increase scenario by the year 2030. This corresponds to a reduction of 42% from the base year 2021.

However, our evaluation of 2022 data shows that only 11% of our greenhouse gas emissions result from our own activities. As much as 89% are so-called Scope 3 emissions, with barley cultivation as the most significant contributor.

We will continue to offer practical training and calculation tools to our farmers, to assist their gradual movement towards more regenerative farming. Through our partnership with Improvin’, we are developing a platform for collection of farming data, welcoming our farmers to a closer cooperation with our customer.​

We report and assess our sustainability journey through the EcoVadis, Sedex and CDP platforms and the UN Global Compact framework. In addition, our corporate Annual Report discloses our sustainability progress transparently.

In recent years we have made exciting breakthroughs on alternatives to traditional sources for malts. Our bean-based inredient Sprau® can be used to partly replace barley-based malt in beer and whisky. By increasing the use of faba beans in our food system we contribute to regenerative farming via crop rotation.

To be successful in our sustainability goals, we will need to work holistically as a value chain, supporting our farmers, partners and customers in their respective sustainability journeys. Together, we can create more sustainability through malt.

Our employees are our most valuable assets​

Everyone in Viking Malt is entitled to have a safe and healthy work environment, which consists of employees’ physical, psychological, and social well-being. Our key actions to enhance safety include intensive training programs for employees and implementation of the life-saving rules across our operations.

We offer all our employees equal opportunities and treat people equally regardless of their gender, ethnic origin, nationality, skin color, social origin, age, creed, political convictions, work position, health conditions, or other corresponding matters. We are proud of our gender diversity and well balanced gender split in a traditionally male-dominated industry.​

The way we lead is based on our values: We respect, We care, We are curious, and Together we strive for success. ​

Reports & Certificates

To help you get a more detailed picture on our sustainability commitments and actions, we have compiled all relevant reports and certificates here.

In addition to our Annual Report that includes a dedicated section on Sustainability, you will find here our CSR Report, Environmental Policy and Energy Policy. Also included are our commitment to the UN Global Compact principles, and the relevant ISO certificates on corporate sustainability, energy and environment, organic production, and more.

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