The hop harvest is here. We can now start looking at how the 2024 hop-growing season turned out. Reports from the Yakima Valley, where about 75 percent of the nation’s hops are grown, suggest the growers faced some challenges this year that impacted the crop and the harvest, which is currently underway and will continue for several weeks. Hop growers always face challenges, but here is a look at the 2024 growing season, its unique challenges, and how that will impact the hop harvest.
Because of the El Niño winter, hop growers in the Yakima Valley endured water shortages this year. Because of less snow in the mountains, and less snowpack, growers got only 55% of the usual water supply from the Roza canal. According to Claire Desmarais of CLS Farms, the Irrigation District scheduled periodic shut-offs to preserve the reservoirs. These shut-offs can lead to several days of disruption to normal watering schedules. The impact on particular hop varieties varies.
Overall yields are expected to be lower for some varieties while others should have near-normal harvests. Varieties with Neomexicanus origins fared better. Hops like Sabro, Zappa, Comet, Talus, and HBC 472 were less affected. Some other drought-tolerant varieties, such as El Dorado, Vista and Elani, also fared well.
In the Yakima Valley June was uncommonly cold and July was intensely hot. This impacted some hop varieties while others showed resilience. Last year’s early heat caused “split bloom,” but this year’s later heat avoided such issues but did increase mite pressure. That means growers had to spray more than they anticipated–a situation that creates its own set of challenges.
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Claire Desmarais, whose family has farmed hops in the Yakima Valley for five generations, explains how these factors are expected to impact the harvest at CLS Farms. “We expect certain varieties to harvest later than normal while others will likely harvest earlier. Centennial, for example, will harvest much later than last year with ideal maturity beginning August 28th. However, growers face processing constraints and likely will start earlier to ensure other varieties maturing more quickly do not over-ripen.”
“At CLS Farms and throughout the Valley, we anticipate a higher-than-average Centennial crop this year, with harvest beginning later than usual, and do not foresee any issues with yield or quality. Cascade and El Dorado look like they’re maturing quicker than in years prior, pushing up against the middle section of harvest and putting pressure on capacity, likely when other varieties like Citra might also be ready.”
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To sum it up… Some varieties will see lower yields while others will not be impacted. Some varieties will get harvested a bit later than normal. Some varieties will reach maturity early and need to be harvested. This uncommon timeline will put pressure on the processing facilities. The Yakima Valley’s hop growers and hop industry are resilient and will meet the challenge.
