Hop Harvest Began last Weekend
The hop harvest began last weekend in eastern Slovenia, some two weeks earlier than usual. The hop plants have ripened and are ready to be picked, Darko Simoncic, the director of the Slovenian Institute for Hop Research and Brewing said.
Hop growers in the Savinjsko region were the first ones to start the harvest, while the rest will follow sometime in the middle of August, Simocic said.
In 2004 and 2005, the hop growers picked about 2,500 tonnes of hops, while the amount of hops produced this year will most likely stand at around 2,000 tonnes due to drought that struck at the beginning of July, Simoncic said.
Last year's harvest was considerably lower though, as hop fields yielded only 1,870 tonnes of hops due to bad weather conditions, Simoncic explained.
Slovenian hop growers produce around 3% of world's hops and rank fourth in Europe and fifth in the world in terms of production.
Currently, there are 154 professional hop growers in Slovenia, while around 500 season workers are expected to take part in this year's harvest.
The area of hop fields is constantly increasing, as every year the area under hop cultivation increases. This year, 106 hectares of new fields have been opened, Simoncic said.
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