By Dan Lemke
For several years, the Agricultural Utilization Research Institute (AURI) has played a key role in projects intended to further the viability of Kernza®, a perennial intermediate wheatgrass developed by The Land Institute and the University of Minnesota. The Kernza plant features a deep root system that is attractive for soil retention, carbon capture, nutrient leaching reduction, and soil health via regenerative agriculture.
On a three-year project led by the Stearns County Soil and Water Conservation District, researchers evaluated the effectiveness of Kernza perennial grain stands on water quality, the development of sustainable supply chains, post-harvest processing, and the development of value-added uses. The Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR) provided funding for the project.
In addition to the plant’s agronomic features, Kernza grain can be used as an ingredient in food products including breads, cereal products, and even cookies. One of the more promising avenues for Kernza is the beverage industry.
“We identified that one of the near-term potential markets for this grain was in the malting, brewing, and distilling industries,” says AURI Project Manager Matthew Leiphon. “That led us to start reaching out and contacting partners around Minnesota and elsewhere to start identifying how we could develop ingredients and value-added end products.”
“We know that there’s a lot of promise in this grain for malting, fermenting, brewing, and distilling, so we saw this as an opportunity to continue building technical expertise and commercial applications to see where the sweet spots lie for utilizing this grain in beverages,” explains Alexandra Ostlund, AURI business development director of novel supply chains.
Thorough Testin
Because of its unique flavor palette, brewers and distillers have been among the early adopters of Kernza. AURI tapped into the expertise of the Rahr Technical Center (RTC) in Shakopee to learn more about the brewing characteristics of Kernza.
Rahr Malting is one of the largest malting companies in the world and operates North America’s largest single-site malting facility in Shakopee. The company operates the RTC to provide testing and analytical expertise on fermented beverages, malt, and other ingredients. The facility includes a pilot brewery as well as micro malting capabilities.
Malting involves steeping, germinating, and drying. Grains are soaked in water and allowed to germinate. The grains are then dried, which kills the young shoots, but makes the grains easier for brewers to use.
Juan Medina Bielski is a malting scientist at the RTC, conducting research and innovative work within the malting process. He says some U.S. brewers have worked with raw Kernza, but there wasn’t much available information about malting the grain.
“AURI had an interest in pursuing malting Kernza and getting it into the hands of Minnesota brewers and creating exposure to Minnesota consumers,” Medina Bielski says. “So, we started with looking at the quality and assessing its germination capacity.”
Medina Bielski says there were some handling and processing challenges working with Kernza in part because of its small seed size. However, he was able to conduct several malting trials using the grain. The RTC produced a variety of brews including a hazy IPA.
“It made fantastic hazy beer,” Medina Bielski says. “It had really great flavor and some unique, spicy notes. There was some nice fruitiness to it and the haze was something that really impressed me.”
Medina Bielski also noted that the RTC produced a whiskey using a mix of Kernza and distillers malt. As part of the whiskey trials, data was collected on the malting, mash, fermentation, distillation, and accelerated aging processes.
“We definitely had some good reviews of the qualities that it had,” Medina Bielski recounts. “I would be interested to see someone make a whiskey with the higher color malted Kernza because I think that would produce some phenomenal results.”
“Juan’s done a lot to help us find a sweet spot, for example, on how dark to roast or toast the malt to get its peak flavor, so you’re developing flavor without doing too much,” Ostlund says. “A lot of brewers across the nation so far have been using raw grain, so we wanted to see how we could use it, similar to other malt ingredient formats used for barley or rye, where you malt the grain and then brew or distill with it.”
Sharing Information
Armed with new information on brewing and distilling, AURI is working to share that knowledge with partners in the industry in an effort to increase Kernza’s use in beverages. AURI’s work with Kernza also includes identifying areas where development needs to continue.
“I think the handling challenges are reflected up and down the supply chain,” Medina Bielski contends. “I think there are needs from the combine all the way up to the end user, even for milling and for brewers. But, I think there’s a lot of potential for exploration.”
Ostlund says AURI is focused on helping to resolve gaps that have been identified in the Kernza supply chain.
“We’re looking at the pain points that we hear from commercial pilot partners as they’ve been working with Kernza,” Ostlund says. “There are some kinks along the supply chain, for example, because Kernza is still an emerging crop. Therefore, there will continue to be some inconsistencies in the quality and the grain size as things develop, mature, and get closer to the targets desired by industry. It’s been a lot of reconfiguring and working with groups to see how we can work with the equipment and the machinery that is available to them. That’s been a rewarding part of this process, too, the continued improvements.”
Ongoing Development
The Forever Green Initiative, housed at the University of Minnesota, is a research and innovation platform that has been breeding Kernza. About five years ago, the Forever Green Initiative released a Kernza variety called Minnesota Clearwater, which is extensively grown in Minnesota and other Midwestern states.
“We are focused on trying to breed perennial crops and winter annual crops that have a benefit to soil health, to water quality, and also provide an economic option for farmers in Minnesota and beyond,” says Katharine Chute, product and market development specialist for the Forever Green Initiative.
Chute says her organization is also interested in helping develop opportunities for Kernza in malting and distilling.
“We’ve heard from distillers who have tried a Kernza whiskey that the taste is very distinct, and that they’re able to work with it easily,” Chute says. “I’ve heard also from a number of distillers who are curious about Kernza. Some want to become growers themselves and then have on-farm grain production that contributes to their version of Kernza whiskey.”
Chute says the Forever Green Initiative is working on Kernza breeding initiatives to develop varieties that address some of the handling issues distillers have identified. Efforts include breeding varieties with higher yields, larger seed sizes, and other characteristics that make Kernza easier to grow and manage.
“We’re hopeful that we’ll be able to release our next variety sometime in 2025, which will have improved characteristics on those metrics,” Chute says.
Kernza is gaining traction in the beverage industry, but the combination of agronomic characteristics and potential uses for Kernza make it an intriguing crop for the state’s farmers.
“I think that’s why Kernza is really interesting for Minnesota,” Leiphon contends. “This Minnesota collaboration is a leader in bringing this grain to market right now, and it offers an ingredient that might allow brewers and distillers to differentiate their value-added products with consumers, from both Kernza’s sustainability attributes supporting soil health and regenerative agriculture as well as being a locally grown Minnesota crop.”
