Hops in 2020 Pt 1
I’m Bob Larson. Don’t let a little thing like a pandemic get in the way of beer production, and here in the Pacific Northwest, the nation’s Hop capital, growers are doing their part to keep the breweries going!
But, the Washington Hop Commission’s Jaki Brophy says 2020 has not been without its challenges for hop growers …
BROPHY … “It’s been interesting. You know, I think the biggest challenge for everybody is figuring out how to keep things moving and keep things going with all these extra COVID regulations and safety precautions.”
But, Brophy says growers have met those challenges into harvest season …
BROPHY … “We’re still in harvest. That just kicked off at the very end of August. In Washington, a little bit earlier and Oregon, and then also at the very end of August in Idaho as well. It has been interesting because hops don’t know there’s COVID. They keep doing what they’re going to do.”
The weather, Brophy says has brought recent challenges …
BROPHY … “Yeah, it was interesting. The wind storms did cause a little bit of a problem and will result in some acreage loss or some production loss, but overall, the crop, despite everything that’s happened this year, does look pretty good.”
Tune in tomorrow for more on the 2020 hop harvest and what the markets are looking like for the industry.
