It was in 1998 that Himalaya 292’s significance in Australia grew, following a chance car-park conversation between Dr Chandler and his colleague, Dr Morell. “Dr Chandler had found all these barley types with differently shaped grains which he’d put into packets and then in a shoebox on his shelf thinking they could be interesting one day,” Dr Morell recalls. “I said I’d like to have a look at them because there could be some interesting types.”
And very interesting a packet of Himalaya 292 proved to be. So much so, that a project involving research into the grain was launched by CSIRO later that same year. Investigated by two separate CSIRO divisions, one focused their attention on cross breeding Himalaya 292 to create a variety to suit Australian conditions, while the second targeted their work towards establishing nutritional evidence to support the new barley.
The result was BARLEYmax®
and by 2007 a study was under way at CSIRO to test the nutritional value of the grain in various food products, with tests showing the products comprised a low glycaemic index and promoted healthy bowel activity.
By 2009, the journey from shoebox to supermarket shelf was complete after food manufacturer Popina, under the Goodness Superfoods brand, launched products containing BARLEYmax® throughout Australia.
