A thick, sweet syrup produced by mashing malted barley with water to convert its starches into sugars, then concentrating the liquid. Malt extract contains maltose, dextrins, proteins, B vitamins, and minerals, with a distinctive malty flavour. Brewers use it as a convenient fermentable base for beer, while bakers add it to doughs to improve crust colour, flavour, and yeast activity. It sweetens malt bread, confectionery, and malted milk drinks, and serves as a nutrient medium in microbiology laboratories. Available as syrup or dried powder, in diastatic and non-diastatic forms, it is a versatile ingredient across food and fermentation industries.