Boring Barley Bushels: Sustainability of a Grain
Hordeum vulgare; Barley
Barley, or H. vulgare, is a member of the grass family and a major cereal grain. It was first cultivated in Eurasia as one of the first crops ever domesticated. It is a self pollinating diploid that has then evolved from its ancestor due to human domestication and selective breeding. There are two varieties of barley; six-row barley, which has three spikelets on each side each containing its own individual flower, and two-row barley which has two kernels and produce florets this variant also has a lower protein count and can be sterile at times and is used for animal feed. Barley was the main grain used in many groups of people such as the Hebrews, Greeks, the Romans and most of the European subcontinent. Year after year it has been the 4th most produced grain in the world after maize, rice and wheat.
Bushels for Sale; Production and Cultivation
Barley is the world’s oldest domesticated grain. It is a short-season, early maturing crop and it can be cultivated in more than a few climates as it is highly adaptable from subarctic to subtropical. Barley for human consumption is used for soups, flour, flatbreads and malt, which is used for beer production. Barley best grows in cool soil in the months from October to early January. When certain conditions are met and it’s fully grown barley is cut, harvesting is done manually in a process that requires a sickle, which is then bundled and dried. For reference one bushel of barley is 48 pounds, a bushel is a unit of measurement used for dry goods, in 2021 the average price of one bushel of barley produced was $4.68. Last year the U.S produced 165.32 million bushels of barley, and since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic barley production has actually slowed down due to an overproduction of the grain the year prior, which indicates that barley production has not been drastically affected.
Oats, Bread and Flour all made from Barley.
Sustainability of Barley
The effects of Barley production in a system has rather positive effects that makes barley a very sustainable crop. Barley is a crop that prospers in the colder months, and with colder soil the roots of the crop dig deep into the ground, this allows for protection from wind and rain and helps decrease erosion. Barley is a very eco-friendly crop because it produces its own nitrogen and cuts the need for any harmful fertilizers that may eventually end up in runoff and local water systems. After clearing a field of barley the amount of nitrogen left in the soil and in the biomass is very beneficial to the upcoming growing season and presents amounts of nitrogen that act as fertilizer for the next crop allowing for optimizing amounts of nitrogen for fixation to occur, bacteria in the soil facilitate this process. The most common use of barley which is in the production and brewing of beer, also has its effects on the environment. Although barley is very sustainable, the effects of the brewing process are not. Brewing is very energy intensive and uses high amounts of water leading to large amounts of wastewater returned to the environment which leads to eutrophication in the local water systems, eutrophication being defined as an excess of nutrients which in turn cause a bloom of life but a loss of oxygen. There are way too many factors that contribute negatively to the environment during the production of beer with barley such as returning wastewater to the water system, biological waste or left over product such as grains and yeast, transportation of the beer, packaging that may not be very eco-friendly, unethical waste disposal and a lack of reusable material to create a cycle of sustainability. In recent years many states such as New York, Connecticut, New Hampshire and Rhode Island have led studies to see what can be improved to achieve sustainability on an industrial scale. So is beer production bad for the environment? The answer depends on energy intake, carbon emissions correlate with the amount of water used, glass manufacturing and barley production. All in all barley is a very sustainable crop and yields high return of nutrients to any field or system, but beer production and brewing is where the environment is mostly affected. Blog post by Diego Casas.
Beef and Barley Stew with Mushrooms
Ingredients
Canola oil
1 (2- to 3-pound) chuck or round beef roast
Salt and pepper
1 large onion, diced
8 to 10 ounces medium whole white button or brown mushrooms
3 celery stalks, diced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup red wine
2 cups beef stock
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup pearl barley
Instructions
- Film the bottom of a large frying pan or skillet with canola oil and set over medium-high heat until the oil is hot. While the oil is heating, season the meat generously with salt and pepper.
- Working in batches, add a single layer of meat to the bottom of the pan. Let it sit for 2 to 3 minutes until the cubes loosen and are seared golden-brown. Flip the cubes and sear the other sides. When all sides are seared, remove the meat to the insert of a slow cooker that holds at least 4 quarts. Sear the remaining meat in batches. If there is any liquid in the pot after the last batch is finished, pour it over the meat. Place the pan back on the stove.
- Heat 1 teaspoon of canola oil in the pan and cook the onions with a pinch of salt until they are translucent and brown around the edges. Add the mushrooms and another pinch of salt, and cook until they have released all the moisture and have turned golden-brown. Add the celery and cook until just softened.
- Clear a space in the middle of the vegetables and sauté the garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the thyme and bay leaf.
- Pour the wine into the pot to deglaze, scraping up all the browned bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon as the wine bubbles. Let the wine reduce down until most of it has evaporated or been absorbed by the vegetables. Transfer everything to the slow cooker.
- Add both stocks to the slow cooker and top with enough water to cover the meat and veggies by about 1/2 inch. Cover and cook for 4 hours on low. Stir in the barley, cover again, and cook until the meat and barley are tender, about 2 hours more on low. Skim off any fat if desired, taste, and add salt and pepper as needed.
https://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-slow-cooker-beef-and-barley-stew-107027
References
Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (n.d.). Barley. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved September 21, 2021, from https://www.britannica.com/plant/barley-cereal.
Barley profile. Agricultural Marketing Resource Center. (n.d.). Retrieved September 21, 2021, from https://www.agmrc.org/commodities-products/grains-oilseeds/barley-profile.
How to Grow BARLEY: Guide to Growing Barley. Organic & Heirloom Seeds from Heirloom Organics. (n.d.). Retrieved September 21, 2021, from http://www.heirloom-organics.com/guide/va/guidetogrowingbarley.html.
Shahbandeh, M. (2021, January 20). U.S. production of barley 2020. Statista. Retrieved September 21, 2021, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/191101/total-us-barley-production-since-2000/.
Barley. FoodPrint. (2018, November 5). Retrieved September 21, 2021, from https://foodprint.org/real-food/barley/.