EU: Experts come with solutions for stabilizing the malting barley market

How can sufficient supplies for the EU maltsters be secured? And how can the market of malting barley be stabilized so that the exportable quantities of France, UK and Denmark come on the market?

Analysts believe that the supply problem will require:
a) a very large tolerance of both brewers and maltsters concerning the specifications of barley and malt,

b) there will be efforts to import barley from third countries, either under the preferential import quota at an import tax of € 16,- per ton or under the tax-free customs-controlled import/export scheme. Licences under the preferential import quota have a validity of 45 days. Ex/Import business requires a preserved identity of the goods. Apart from the administrative problems of such business, the main problem is the availability of good malting barley outside the EU at acceptable prices.

c) the last and regrettable solution of a barley deficit will be a reduction of malt production, which will certainly happen, specifically in those areas with insufficient local supplies and high transport cost from the surplus countries.

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