US barley crop falls 19%, raising risks of tighter malt supplies

US barley production fell 19% year on year in 2026 to 116 mln bushels, or around 2.5 mln tons. According to USDA, this was the steepest decline among the major small grains this season.

Harvested barley area declined 10% to 1.6 mln acres. Average yield also fell to 72.1 bushels per acre, adding further pressure to total production.

Production of other small grains was considerably more stable. US wheat output totaled 1.53 bln bushels and was broadly unchanged from a year earlier, while oat production slipped just 1% to 69.1 mln bushels.

The smaller barley crop could intensify competition between feed and malting demand. If a larger share of supplies is used for feed, availability of malting barley could tighten, creating upside risks for malt prices in the 2026/27 MY.

The impact will depend on crop quality, inventories, imports and the share of barley that meets malting specifications. Smaller breweries could be particularly exposed to higher raw material costs, as they generally have less scope to hedge expenses or secure supplies under long-term contracts.

Tags: barley, USA, malting barley