Cheers to gluten-free beer made with malted rice

Arkansas produces more rice than any other U.S. state, including about half of the nation’s long-grain rice. As long-grain rice exports have dropped from 50% in 2010 to 43% in 2024, growers have looked for new domestic markets. Beer shows potential. Brewers who use rice in beer typically rely on milled rice, which requires additional processing steps and costs. 

Researchers from Arkansas found that substituting malted rice for milled rice could reduce beer production costs by up to 12% for large-scale brewers. Malted rice also yields more grain per acre than barley while offering equal or greater sugar extract potential, reducing required crop acreage by half or more. All-rice malt beer would be gluten-free and could be produced within a competitive cost range compared to other gluten-free alternatives. 

This study suggests selling malted rice for brewing beer could give Arkansas rice growers a more sustainable domestic market to offset export losses, while offering brewers a cost-effective ingredient with unique flavor potential. Gluten-free beer producers could benefit from a competitively priced malt that avoids flavor defects common in other alternatives. On a global scale, malted rice could serve as a viable brewing material in tropical and subtropical regions that currently import barley. 

Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station; Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences | Project supported by USDA competitive funds; state appropriations. Photo courtesy of University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture.