Hops are usually added in the production of beer during a boiling stage where their aroma and bitterness is released.
photo by jackson hayes
Senior Reporter
A global shortage of hops, the bitter-tasting agent in beer, could mean the end of the 2-4 for $24, said Jamie Mistry at Cool Breweries in Toronto.
Mistry said some of the smaller breweries like his own will have to increase their selling price because of the increased cost of production.
“I’m going to have enough hops for one more brew and then that’s it. What I do right about now is I tend to write my bid for contracts for hops and no one’s gotten back to me yet,” Mistry said.
“I’ll be able to get hops, I’ll just be paying through the nose for them and I might be using different hop varieties.”
Larger breweries should be able to maintain their production quotas since they buy their hops in bulk on contract, but it is the smaller breweries that have to worry, he said.
Hops, which was first added to beer in the 11th century, is primarily used in beer production and has seen a steady decline in cultivation over the years. This has many hops suppliers and beer brewers worrying about their supply.
According to a report by Ralph Olson, owner and manager of Hopunion, a hops distributor, the shortage is the result of decades of surplus production which allowed many farmers to reduce their crops or pull out all together.
High-quality hops are known to come from Germany. While other countries produce hops of comparable quality, Mistry said production has significantly fallen worldwide.
In Washington state, for example, there were 1,200 farms cultivating hops in the ’80s, and now there are now only about 75.
The increasing consumption of raw resources by countries such as China and India will increase the demand for this commodity already in short supply.
“I don’t think you’re going to see much of the 2-4 for $24 left. It’s just not feasible,” Mistry said.