Some characteristics related to the quality of malt can be worked not only at the genetic level and/or as responses to environmental interactions, but also in industrial process. This study assesses the effect of temperature on β-glucanase activity and on the degradation of β-glucans during the last four days of germination, in the malting process. Four cultivars of good quality malting ('N721', 'N743', 'Scarlett' and 'Sebastian') were analyzed and the results showed they had different performance on the enzyme activity and β-glucan degradation, at the different temperatures tested. A slightly higher temperature at the beginning of germination (22°C) was more effective in terms of the variables studied. Cultivar 'N721' presented the best performance compared to other cultivars, revealing a more homogeneous pattern of β-glucan degradation during germination and also increased efficiency in degrading -glucans as early as in the 96th hour of the germination process. High activity of β-glucanases and shorter time is very interesting to the brewery industry, since it represents an optimization of the malt volume produced and a cost reduction for its production.
Hordeum vulgare ssp. vulgare; barley; malt quality
