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Domestic Barley Production Continues Decades of Decline

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Technical Brewing Projects Director

Chuck joined the Brewers Association staff in 2013 after a long career as a craft brewer. He opened Tennessee’s first brewpub, Boscos, in 1992. As an owner and director of brewery operations for Boscos Brewing Company, he opened additional brewpubs in Memphis, Nashville, and Little Rock, Arkansas. In 2007, Chuck opened and operated Ghost River Brewing in Memphis. He has served as chair of the Association of Brewers Board of Advisors, chair of the Association of Brewers Board of Directors, and was a member of the first Board of Directors for the Brewers Association. In his capacity as technical brewing projects manager, Chuck works with the Technical Committee and the safety, sustainability, quality, draught beer quality, engineering, and supply chain subcommittees to encourage and facilitate best practices in all phases of Brewers Association members' brewery operations.

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The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released the annual crop production report earlier this month.

Key takeaways:

  • Nationally, a record low 2.3 million acres were seeded in 2025. Production was around 141 million bushels, one of the lowest annual levels aside from 2021, when severe drought in the major growing areas affected the harvest.
  • 2025 data reflects the continuing downward trend of barley production in the United States that began in the mid-1980s when annual barley production in the U.S. was around 600 million bushels.
  • One bright spot from the report estimates that record yields were recorded in Delaware, Idaho, Maryland, North Dakota, and Wyoming. Nationally yields were up over 3% per acre.

Twenty-three states are included in the report. Over 80% of the reported production is concentrated in the three leading barley producing states: Montana, Idaho, and North Dakota. Wyoming, Colorado, Washington, Pennsylvania, Maryland, California, Minnesota, and Delaware produced smaller but significant amounts, all over a million barrels. These states are important for local and domestic production of malting barley.

The Big Picture

Growers and maltsters use NASS reports to help guide their planting and contracting decisions. As beer sales and the demand for many of beer’s ingredients continue to decline, Brewers Association encourages members to clearly communicate their future needs to suppliers, primarily through contracted commitments.

Note: The NASS Crop Production 2025 Summary provides comprehensive data on many U.S. crops in addition to barley. Brewers using other grains as adjuncts, such as wheat and oats, may find the full report to be of interest. As an example, both production and yield of rice were down in 2025 from 2024 numbers.

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Link to author biography
Technical Brewing Projects Director

Chuck joined the Brewers Association staff in 2013 after a long career as a craft brewer. He opened Tennessee’s first brewpub, Boscos, in 1992. As an owner and director of brewery operations for Boscos Brewing Company, he opened additional brewpubs in Memphis, Nashville, and Little Rock, Arkansas. In 2007, Chuck opened and operated Ghost River Brewing in Memphis. He has served as chair of the Association of Brewers Board of Advisors, chair of the Association of Brewers Board of Directors, and was a member of the first Board of Directors for the Brewers Association. In his capacity as technical brewing projects manager, Chuck works with the Technical Committee and the safety, sustainability, quality, draught beer quality, engineering, and supply chain subcommittees to encourage and facilitate best practices in all phases of Brewers Association members' brewery operations.

See Chuck Skypeck's Articles