The Pacific Northwest’s hop acreage (Idaho, Oregon and Washington specifically) is growing rapidly, fueled by demand from craft brewers to develop and produce new beer flavors to satisfy the ever evolving tastes of consumers. “There is a massive desire by craft beer drinkers for brewers to come up with unique, hoppy flavors.” Said a sales representative from Hopsteiner, an international hop grower with it’s US hop farms located in Washington.
Hop acreage in the Pacific Northwest is expected to increase by 6.4 percent compared to just 1 year ago according to the USDA-NASS. That equates to 54,135 acres if realized and would mean a record high in that region of the US. Idaho, the third largest hops producer in the US, is forecasted to experience the largest growth of the three states with a projected growth of just over 27 percent compared to last year. The record growth will make the United States the largest hop-growing country in the world (by acreage) ahead of even Germany.
Source: BeverageDaily.com