The hop crop in Germany has started and hop-growers looking forward to an excellent crop.
Johann Pichlmaier, president of The Association of German Hops Growers, expects an above-average crop of 41 400 tons. This is almost 50 percent more than last year, which was severely affected by heat and drought. On top of the better yield also the area under cultivation was expanded by 742 to 18,600 hectares.
The outlook is much better than expected. Only in July the forecast was only 36,000 tons. But moderate temperatures in July and August and sufficient rain helped the plants to develop the right amount and quality of hop cones.
