Cooperation Offer

Creation of a small industry of cereals breweries in a short circuit

Offer name: 
Creation of a small industry of cereals breweries in a short circuit
Expiry date: 
15/07/2018
Offering LAG: 
GAL Burdinale Mehaigne
Country:
  • Belgium
Spoken languages:
  • Inglés - Francés - Italiano

Looking to cooperate with

Type of partner: 

Territories showing interest in cross-border development of new high-potential agricultural sectors, including brewing cereals, micro malt houses (breweries, agronomic research centers, cooperatives, producers, etc.).
The territories of interest for territorial development are needed in different towns and with experts in the sector of millstone heritage (maintaining flour mills ect) and training (LAG, villages and town councils, Institutes of Heritage, Farming Schools and colleges, Rural Family Houses ...)

Country(ies):
  • Unión Europea
Type of area:
  • National / Regional borders, Inland, Island, Peri-Urban, Rural
Assets of the area:
  • High Nature Value, Cropland

Project idea

Project type:
    • Cooperation within the country
    • Across regions
    • Cooperation within the country
    • Within the same region
    • Transnational cooperation
    • Cross - border cooperation
    • Transnational cooperation
    • With other MSs (no shared border)
Project topic:
    • Innovation
    • Research & Development
    • Knowledge transfer / education / training activities
    • Food & Drink
    • Marketing
Additional keywords:
  • Semi-subsistence farming; Supply chains / Producer organisations & Cooperatives; Economic diversification; Tourism / Territorial branding; Circular economy / bio, green economy
Context: 

The particularity of the village of Lavoir (municipality of Héron within the LAG Burdinale-Mehaigne) is to have within its territory a traditional flour mill and a craft brewery. The project wants to combine these two specificities around the diversification agricultural and support for the short circuit and study of the feasibility of producing a brewery hop sector with micro-functioning sector, with malt houses and with microbreweries (craft breweries) and the transmission of milling know-how.

Project idea summary: 

Microbreweries (craft breweries) are flourishing everywhere in Europe and particularly in Wallonia. The craft beers produced attract more and more beer lovers of who want this authenticity.
In order to reinforce the Belgian roots and to exist in the face of global competition, many brewers wish to engage in a quality approach certified by controlled appellations of local products.
However, raw materials, including barley and hops, necessary for the production of beer are little cultivated in Belgium, among them, hops.
Although it is a native plant that gives the essential oil generating bitterness to beer, hops are grown by only 18 farmers in Belgium, mainly in Flanders (178 ha in Belgium against 3000 ha in the world, about 6% of production). This production is much too low compared to the potential demand of brewers.
Belgium imports 99% of the barley used to make its beers, despite the fact that Wallonia has the necessary soil quality and know-how.
However, microbreweries are demanding to work with malting barley and local hops.

Objectives: 

First objectives
Hops are a complex product, both in terms of production and marketing. Malting barley is not profitable for a reason of economic profitability: lower yield and risk of high decommissioning.

As at the recent conferences on the subject, studies of the creation of a real brewery industry is not yet ready to be carried out, it requires in particular the determination of the varieties of hops and barley, and the optimum means of processing these products have not yet been established,and needs a much more in-depth study, especially at the financial level.
One problem raised concerns the processing of raw materials, particularly the absence of malt houses or hop dryers that make it possible to work small with quantities.
Wallonia has only 2 malt housing plants on its territory and none of them allows small volumes to be worked on.
A much more in-depth study on the feasibility of a totally local beer, and in particular at the economic level, has not yet been discussed for the various stakeholders. (Farmers, brewers and training operators)
It is precisely these questions that the LAG BM would like to answer through this "cooperation" sheet, based on the exchange of experiences with other territories.
Secondary particular objective.
By acquiring the Moulin de Ferrières in Lavoir, the Commune of Héron wanted to keep the mill in operation. It was soon confronted with an obvious reality: the shortage of millers. The enthusiasm of the actions already undertaken in recent months confirms this.
The maintenance of the milling tools also requires a specific artisanal know-how that is becoming scarce. Examples include the grinding wheel or the realization of wooden parts of the mechanism.