Fusarium graminearum is a fungal plant pathogen, most known for causing Fusarium head blight (FHB) in wheat and barley. Globally, FHB is responsible for significant economic impacts on the grain industry arising through lowering of grain quality related to mycotoxin contamination and yield loss. In malting, the environmental conditions set to stimulate barley germination are also conducive to new fungal growth and can lead to production of mycotoxins such as deoxynivalenol (DON). One important aspect of Fusarium growth on barley in malting is the presence of defensive plant compounds such as phenolic acids. Functional and structural modifications to the grain that occur in malting, including modifications associated with the activities of Fusarium, may influence the composition and/or availability of the phenolic acids in barley, and may have implications for Fusarium growth and toxin production. In this study, we investigated the effects of Fusarium infection during steeping on the availability of phenolic acids. The concentrations of four phenolic acids (caffeic, p-coumaric, ferulic, and sinapic) in the soluble free and insoluble bound extracts from barley, green malt, and malt were determined using high performance liquid chromatography. The dominant phenolic acids that were detected were ferulic and p-coumaric acid. During the course of malting, the quantity of each phenolic acid decreased (barley > green malt > malt). However, the rate of decline in the quantity of extractable p-coumaric acid was slowed by the presence of Fusarium; in other words, more p-coumaric acid was extracted from green malt that was infested with Fusarium, compared to non-infested green malt. The antifungal activities of ferulic and p-coumaric acid were examined in-vitro. Ferulic acid demonstrated the most significant fungal inhibition, at over 70% growth reduction at the highest concentration (1.0 mM) tested 7 days post-inoculation. A dose-effect relationship was found, where higher concentrations of the phenolic acids resulted in greater growth reduction of fungal mycelia. Current work is focused on clarifying the influence of Fusarium degradative enzymes on the release of phenolic compounds during malting of barley. Outcomes from this study could provide a better understanding of the interactions between barley and Fusarium which may form the basis for practical approaches to improve malt quality.