Brewers Supply Group

 

Hops

 

 

2008 IHGC Acreage Report

Market Report, International Hops Growers Congress, 2007

Our Philosophy
Brewers Supply Group offers a wide range of domestic and imported hops. Our hops are hand selected for quality by experts, who have a combined experience of over forty years in the hop industry. The drastic decline in the number of growers operating in the Yakima Valley will ultimately lead to less choice in varieties and quality. It is our philosophy, therefore, to buy only the very best quality from the best growers and to give the grower a sustainable return on his crop. Providing quality hops to the brewer doesn't just mean buying the best hops from the grower, good processing and packaging is also extremely important. We operate our own pelleting facility to maintain quality control and ensure that our hop pellets keep the fresh character of our whole cone hops. We extend this philosophy to our English, German, Czech and European varieties. We buy from the best growers and import the whole bales using cold transit routes and process here in the US where the equipment and storage conditions are far superior to those in Europe and the UK. Because of our distribution points across the US we are able to offer hops on contract or spot purchase from our warehouses, each of which are equipped with cold storage facilities.

Our division has one large advantage, we are not owned by hop farmers, hence we can choose the hop farmers we are buying from and make sure they supply the best quality hops!

Forward Contracting
We encourage brewers, both small and large, to contract forward for their requirements. This provides some stability in the market for all in the supply chain. The international hop market has overproduced hops for ten years, which has contributed to low pricing and the decline of the amount of hop farmers. We have now, however, entered an era of reduced production of hops worldwide and, as a consequence, a very limited amount of spot hops being available.

Many craft brewers have therefore become more acutely aware that there is a genuine need to contract for at least one year's supply of hops as some aroma varieties are already sold out shortly after harvest. The larger craft breweries have now wisely adopted a contracting philosophy of 2 to 3 years ahead.

By contracting a given variety forward the hop dealer can make firm forecasts to the growers who will then make the investment in time and materials to ensure that his product is available and of good quality. The large brewers will continue to drive the demand curve for any given variety. So if craft brewers favor a hop which is in decline, contracting is essential to encourage the grower to continue production. New or trend driven varieties tend to become short so contracting becomes a way of safeguarding supply. We will, of course, do our best to serve the spot buyer with any requirement he or she may have, but we can not guarantee that supply. We will, at time of harvest, (usually second week of September) offer a selection service in Yakima. Brewers may visit and examine the new harvest hops and discuss their needs. Please contact us in the summer in order to book an appointment.

Brewers Supply Group Hop Division:

P.O. Box 1401
Yakima, WA 98907
e-mail: smcgree@rahr.com



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