To assure a “truly local pint,” a trade group for small and independent brewers announced an agreement with USDA’s Agricultural Research Service to fund the breeding of a disease-resistant hop cultivar that will be freely available. The trade group Brewers Association says the goal is to ensure “all growers have access to high quality, disease-resistant cultivars they need to sustain production at levels required by brewers.”
The project will help growers of “legacy” varieties and developers of new strains by providing germplasm for plant breeding. The Brewers Association says, “Even the smallest brewers will be able to source ingredients they need to produce that truly local pint.”
Hops, cone-shaped flowers that grow on a vine, are a flavoring and stabilizing agent in beer, providing the distinctive bitter taste. Growth in the brewing industry has created demand for hop varieties nationwide but growers face chronic losses because the plants lack broad-spectrum resistance to pests and diseases. Disease management and crop loss approach 15 percent of the value of the crop. The project funded by the Brewers Association will aid a research program located in Oregon and Washington State, the major hop-growing states.