The Petrópolis Group unveiled its national hop production program at Brasil Brau 2024, presenting advances in adapting the crop to Brazilian conditions. Since 2018, the company has tested cultivation in Teresópolis, Rio de Janeiro, and in 2023 expanded to Uberaba, Minas Gerais, where 6,000 seedlings of Comet and Cascade were planted on two hectares. Altogether, Petrópolis manages 7.5 hectares of hops, the largest plantation in Brazil recognized by the Ministry of Agriculture. The initiative addresses Brazil’s reliance on imported hops, mostly from the United States and Germany, which in 2020 amounted to 3,243 tons worth USD 57 million.
The Petrópolis Group, founded in 1994, is Brazil’s third-largest brewing company and the largest with 100% national capital. Its portfolio includes leading beer brands such as Itaipava, Crystal and Lokal, as well as energy drinks and mineral water, giving it a strong presence across the country.
At the fair’s brewing science congress, Leonardo Penna, Beer Innovation & Production specialist at Petrópolis, highlighted solutions the project is testing for Brazil’s shorter natural day length—chiefly supplemental lighting—together with agronomic management tailored to local soils and temperatures. According to the presentation, artificial lighting enables two harvests per year in Brazil, unlike the single typical summer crop in higher-latitude regions; the initiative also tackles gaps such as locally available processing machinery to help small growers achieve scale.
Independent academic work underscores the approach: Brazil—one of the world’s three largest beer producers—has rapidly growing demand from craft breweries but historically imports almost all hops. Research identifies photoperiod as the critical constraint in subtropical latitudes and documents how LED lighting, irrigation, and mulching can support viable yields and, in some regions, multiple annual cycles.
