Coopers announced on Wednesday it would look to use newly developed barley strains in future beer production amid concerns that climate change will lead to reduced barley crops.
Coopers last year used a new variety developed by the University of Adelaide, known as Flagship, to produce a limited amount of beer.
“We were very pleased with the results of the initial brew and will be looking to use the grain across our full range of beers and malt extracts once it is commercially viable,” said Coopers Brewery managing director, Dr Tim Cooper.
The University of Adelaide along with ABB Grain developed the Flagship variety, which has a better grain yield and is more disease resistance than conventional varieties such as Gairdner.
Cooper said that Flagship provided significant benefits for both brewers and growers.
“Flagship was designed specifically as a higher yielding, superior quality malting barley, which enables brewers to make better beer as well as providing better returns to growers,” he said.