Barley Growers Enter Healthy Food Market Published: August 06, 2008
From Ag Weekly
Sean Ellis and Bob Smathers, Idaho Farm Bureau Writers
LEWISTON, Idaho - Idaho barley growers have ushered their industry into the lucrative healthy food market with a new variety of high-fiber food barley. At the same time, they could be helping to fight heart disease and diabetes.
North Idaho producers started planting BGLife Barley last year and have expanded acreage for the new grain that’s being touted as the next generation of healthy food for an increasingly diet-conscious America.
Food barley is an emerging economic opportunity for Idaho and the Pacific Northwest. BGLife officials say the new variety, which is high in soluble fiber, has a superior nutritional profile and helps fight heart disease, obesity and diabetes. It entered the consumer marketplace with Heart Balance Cereal.
Farmer Sam White of Genesee said at least 10 farmers in the area are growing the new barley.
The barley yielded as well as the field barley, and it didn’t cost any more to grow," he said. "The seed (cost) was fairly nominal, so the growers’ costs were fairly similar, but they got a premium on the product."
According to BGLife officials, about 2,000 acres are being grown in north Idaho and another 400 acres of seed is being grown in southern Idaho.
Idaho Barley Commission Administrator Kelly Olson said food barley has never been a big part of the U.S. market and only about 3 percent of barley produced in the United States is used for that purpose.
But, she added, We see a great opportunity to expand. It’s a great growth opportunity.
According to BGLife officials, the product promotes healthy blood sugar, is proven to reduce cholesterol, promotes healthy blood pressure and helps control weight, all conditions associated with diabetes and heart disease.
The FDA approved a heart healthy claim for food barley in 2006.
FDA approval is especially important to savvy consumers who have those types of health concerns, Olson said.
Overseas market demand created an opportunity for the IBC to collaborate with Pacific Northwest Farmers Cooperative (PNFC) of Genesee to export BGLife Barley.
The United States sold its first shipment of the barley to Japan last year, and all of it was sourced from Idaho, mostly from an area just north of Genesee, which is near Lewiston.
"I am told the Japanese customers liked the barley well enough that they have developed a new heart-healthy food product from the Idaho barley that is just now appearing on Japanese grocery shelves," Gov. Butch Otter said June 24 during a press conference introducing the product.
"The opportunities appear to be significant in other Asian markets as well, like Taiwan, which want to improve the fiber content of their rice-based diets," Otter added.
The domestic market potential for the product is also growing as Americans become more aware of food barley’s health benefits.
According to the American Diabetes Association, 20 million Americans have diabetes and 54 million are pre-diabetic, meaning they have all the risk factors that could lead to diabetes down the road.
"I am hoping American consumers take notice of this new BGLife Barley and its implications for human wellness," Otter said.
BGLife Barley "is at the center of our barley industry’s expansion into value-added production that focuses on unique traits that promote human wellness," said IBC commissioner Dan Mader, a grower and chairman of the National Food Barley Commission.
Historically, barley has been grown in Idaho for two primary markets: as malting for the domestic beer market and as cattle feed.
Both markets have been good to Idaho producers, Mader said. But BGLife Barley presents an entirely new and exciting venture opening up for Idaho and the Northwest.
Mader said expanding into food barley is an important development for the state because Idaho is the second-largest producer of barley in the country. Idaho produced more than 44 million bushels of barley last year that was valued at $186 million, making it the fifth-largest cash crop in the state.
According to White, who is also chief operations officer of the PNFC, growers produced barley under contract with the Japanese company last year with very tight agronomic and handling specifications.
"This was our first experience with the new BGLife Barley variety and despite some challenging growing conditions last year, the barley performed well and met our customer’s expectations," White said.
BGLife officials said the company is going to expand beyond the breakfast market and the new product will soon be used in everything from muffins to pizza crust.
"The opportunities look tremendous for this new type of food barley, both for export as well as for largely untapped domestic markets," Otter said. "From my vantage point, BGLife Barley is a tremendous win for regional farmers who have new value-added markets, and for our consumers, particularly those with heart and diabetic risk factors."
Obesity and diabetes are the most significant health issues of the 21st century, according to Dr. Frances Gough, co-founder and chief medical officer for Sound Health Solutions, a weight and health risk management organization in Redmond, Wash.
"The progression from obesity to pre-diabetes to diabetes is real and largely preventable," Frances said during the press conference. "Can BGLife Barley aid in the reduction or prevention of the onset of diabetes? The data looks promising."
According to Gough, the economic toll for obesity is $117 billion annually and for diabetes it’s $174 billion. Combined, they claim nearly 750,000 lives each year.
"Every weapon in the fight against the epidemics of diabetes and obesity should be employed to its fullest," Gough said. "An intervention as simple as BGLife Barley in a breakfast cereal ... should be evangelized by physicians, dietitians and care providers."
