USA: Pacific Northwest hop acreage once again hits record high

The US hop acreage strung in the Pacific Northwest (Washington, Idaho, and Oregon) once again hit a record high. The region saw a 5% acre increase (+2,630 acres) compared to the 2019 crop, coming in at 59,174 acres for 2020, Hopsteiner said in their latest report.

With the 5% acreage increase, production for the 2020 harvest was on pace to exceed 117-million pounds; however, adverse weather conditions this year will likely impact production yields. With some varieties still being harvested, more accurate expectations will likely approximate to 110 million pounds.

All three Pacific Northwest States (WA, ID, & OR) saw acreage increases. Washington State remains the largest growing region and accounts for 72% (42,343 acres) of total US acreage, followed by Idaho at 16% (9,374 acres), and Oregon at 12% (7,457 acres). The top five hop varieties strung for 2020 include Citra®, CTZ, Mosaic®, Simcoe®, and Cascade.

International markets continue to play an important role in the US hop market. Unlike the US, craft beer abroad is still maturing, but trends show favouritism toward alluring US craft beer styles. Domestically grown proprietary varieties are well received, paving way to healthy demand for US aroma/flavor hops and further influencing acreage expansion. Although, the US hosts the most acreage of any nation, Germany follows close by with 50,452 acres strung for 2020 and now tilts the scales for having predominantly more bittering hop acreage than the US. These two countries will produce 80% of the world’s hop supply for 2020.

03 October, 2020