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Oregon hop harvests nosedive 20% as craft beer market declines
Declining craft beer sales have led to Oregon seeing a nearly 20% drop in its 2024 hop harvest, according to the Oregon Beverage Alliance.
Sam Pecoraro, brewmaster at Von Ebert Brewing and Secretary of the Oregon Brewers Guild, said: “Beer is usually only four ingredients – water, malt, yeast, and hops, which makes the quality of those ingredients all the more important.”
According to the US Department of Agriculture via the OBA, hop acreage plummeted nationally by -18% from 2023, a statistic that has been reflected by Oregon hop growers, who are also down -18% compared to last year.
The OBA has claimed that Oregon has gone from 7,000 hop acres in 2022 to just 5,500 acres in 2024.
Sodbuster Farms fourth-generation hop farmer Erica Lorentz explained: “It’s been tough to say the least with the Oregon hop harvest down -12% last year and now -18% this year. Sometimes it’s simply a variety of hop going out of style, but now all hops are down because of declining beer sales.”
Local reports have pointed out how historically Oregon was once home to nearly 400 breweries, brewpubs, and taprooms which generated billions in economic output and wage income, yet it has endured widespread closures in recent years.
The OBA attributed the issue as having come about due to changing consumer tastes, with many consumer’s preferences shifting to ready-to-drink cocktails and cannabis, as well as there also being fewer people drinking.
Portland, once considered a cornerstone of breweries and beer culture, has seen a spate of brewery closures in recent years – also reflecting this trend.
More than 20 breweries closed between 2023 and the first month of 2024, a pattern which continued later into the year. According to the Brewers Association, craft beer sales fell -2.1% halfway through 2024 and are showing no indications that things may improve.
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