Danny and Alison Milne already had a successful arable and beef business, just over 300 hectares at Demperston farm, Auchtermuchty.
But they knew they had to look harder at developing a new income stream and they should do it by incorporating new technologies, while utilising the expertise already available.
The farm had a long history of growing top-quality mating barley and through research they discovered there was demand for specialty malts from craft brewers and distillers.
To link the supply and demand, it was obvious that a small-scale malting pant was required, and so Crafty Maltsters was born.
But it came at considerable cost. A new building beside the existing grain store, a 3.5-tonne batch malting plant, steep tank and all the conveying and bagging equipment, came with a price tag of 500,000.
Alison said: It was a lot for a family business to consider, but we applied for a Food Processing and Marketing Grant on the building, the plant and some of the ancillary equipment.
I do not think we would have had the confidence to proceed without the grant.
Quality
"We had potential customers lined up, but we discovered we had to prove the quality of our product beyond doubt. Brewers were often particularly interested in provenance and really appreciated the fact the maltster was the same person who had grown the barley.
The investment in Crafty Malsters was significant, but worth it. The couple now have an established customer base and have developed an interesting way to add value to their cereal growing enterprise.
