Japanese craft beer brewer and students develop dog cookies from malt waste

<EBETSU, Hokkaido -- A Japanese craft beer maker and university students are collaborating to transform spent malt grain, a byproduct of brewing, into dog treats that utilize the material effectively and benefit both pets and owners. Baseball, dogs, and beer share a connection. One large dog observed a plate of bone-shaped cookies intently.

The dog's female owner said the pet was initially cautious but now eagerly asks for more. At an animal welfare festival on October 4 at Rakuno Gakuen University in Ebetsu, Hokkaido, visitors and their dogs tasted prototype cookies made from spent grain. Many dogs displayed wariness upon their first cookie but sought additional ones with bright eyes.

This initiative emerged from dog-loving staff at Sora to Shiba, a beer restaurant by Yoho Brewing Co., a Nagano Prefecture craft beer maker famous for Yona Yona Ale. The idea came from staff members who frequent Es Con Field Hokkaido, which hosts baseball games with special seating areas for dog owners. Sora to Shiba generates around 10 metric tons of spent malt annually, primarily used as livestock feed.

The restaurant explored using some of this waste for dog treats. In March, the university's Seminar groups led by associate professor Rumiko Sugimura and professor Toshihiro Kawazoe partnered with Sora to Shiba. Students researched their fields and created a recipe for the prototype cookies, which involved drying and finely grinding spent malt, mixing it with flour, university-produced milk, and other ingredients, and baking it.

No sugar or salt were added. The cookies had a cracker-like texture and a mild flavor with a savory grain aroma and dairy taste. About 260 cookies were baked for the event. Dog owners sampled the treats alongside their pets. Some owners commented, "It doesn't taste like beer," and "My dog usually won't eat cookies, but he ate this one."

Roughly 200 dogs sampled the cookies, and 80% of survey responses indicated their dogs "really enjoyed" or "enjoyed" the treats. Kawazoe noted the products are environmentally friendly, healthy, and safe for consumption. If commercialized, Yoho Brewing Co. plans to outsource production and sell the cookies at Sora to Shiba. Azumi Shimizu, a third-year student and recipe developer, hopes to refine the cookies further based on survey results.