State Senator Patty Ritchie visited the new 1886 Malt House in Fulton Thursday for its official grand opening.

The 1886 Malt House is the state’s largest malt house and through its state-of-the-art facility and team of American Society of Brewing Chemists, it plans to purchase ingredients from New York State farms to produce more than 2,000 tons of high quality malted barley a year. The malted barley will be used to support New York State’s booming craft beer industry.

At the grand opening, Senator Richie—joined by numerous state, local and agricultural officials—stressed the importance of the 1886 Malt House’s role as a link between farmers and craft beverage producers as the demand for locally sourced ingredients continues to grow.

Recently, Senator Ritchie, who serves as Chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, secured state budget funding totaling $10,000 for the New York State Brewers Association, as well as $200,000 for Cornell University’s program to help farm breweries utilize more New York grown ingredients.

(ATTN PHOTO EDITORS: Senator Ritchie is pictured speaking at the grand opening of the 1886 Malt House in Fulton)