Asahi UK Invests in Future of Sustainable Barley Farming

Asahi UK is launching a new collaboration with malt supplier Boortmalt to support the adoption of regenerative agriculture practices on British barley farms. This will cover barley production equivalent to 100% of the pale malt used to brew Asahi’s local British beers, such as Fuller’s London Pride, Meantime Prime Pale, and Dark Star Hophead, delivered on a mass-balance basis.

At the Griffin Brewery in Chiswick, home of all Asahi’s local beer production, pale malt accounts for approximately 90% of the brewery’s annual malt use (3,050 metric tonnes in 2026). Starting from January 2026, this initiative aims to lower greenhouse gas emissions from barley and forms part of Asahi UK’s ongoing work to understand and address the environmental impact of its ingredients.

Participating farms will introduce regenerative practices such as cover cropping, reduced tillage, crop rotation and reduction in artificial fertiliser use – which can enhance soil fertility and structure, leading to better crop yields and water conservation, and help boost biodiversity on farms.

The programme is delivered via Cefetra Ecosystem Services and Soil Capital, who will carry out the measurement, reporting and verification of emissions reductions using a combination of detailed farm-level input data and soil samples. This programme is also designed to align with the SAI Regenerating Together Framework, when it is formally launched later this year.

This builds from Asahi UK’s work to-date on beer’s other key ingredient – hops. This includes supporting two pioneering PhD research projects alongside other partners through FOR HOPS UK, and raising awareness of the challenges British hop farmers are facing from climate change with Brentford FC through Bee a Hop Grower with Pride.

Isabel Ashman, Sustainability Manager at 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. 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, said: “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. The summer drought and high input costs over the last 12 months have reinforced why this is needed. We are delighted to be collaborating with Asahi UK to deliver regenerative agriculture across our grower base and invest in sustainable barley sourcing.”

About Asahi UK Ltd

Asahi UK is a subsidiary of Asahi Europe & International and is responsible for sales, marketing and customer operations across the UK and Ireland. Asahi UK enriches consumer experiences through innovation, high-quality service and an exceptional portfolio of premium beer, ale, and cider brands, which include Peroni Nastro Azzurro (PNA), Asahi Super Dry (ASD), Meantime, Fuller’s London Pride and Cornish Orchards. The Woking-based business is focused on developing quality, super-premium brands and delivering commercial value in the marketplace, through a strong belief in collaboration, customer excellence and people development.

About Boortmalt NV

Boortmalt is a global malting company with a 3 million tonnes production capacity. The group is present on 5 continents with 25 malting plants. Boortmalt’s expertise is widely acknowledged by brewers, distillers, and food industries, who rely on the supply of top-quality barley malts. The Boortmalt Group is a fully owned subsidiary of the agricultural and agribusiness cooperative Axereal. For more information visit www.boortmalt.com.

Footnotes

* Both the emissions baseline, and future emissions reductions and sequestration, are calculated using the Soil Capital methodology.

* Verified, high integrity carbon certificates (Soil Capital Units) are generated by the barley growers. These are supplied with the barley and then the malt via a public registry, to ensure full transparency and ensure no double counting.

* 1 certificate (Soil Capital Unit) represents 1 tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂e) either avoided or removed, versus the baseline.

* The impact of regenerative farming practices is quantified using the Soil Capital greenhouse gas assessment platform (mySoilCapital), which sees farmers undertake yearly measurements to quantify carbon impact. Both carbon reductions and removals are calculated and included in scope. This is done in accordance with ISO 14064-2:2019, before being independently verified by auditor TUV Rhineland to ISO 14064-3:2019 standard.

* More information about the protocol used by Soil Capital is available here.

For more information:

Jon Fuller, Head of Corporate Communications, Asahi UK

Email: jon.fuller@asahibeer.co.uk | Mobile: 07713 568 603

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