Product Information Hop farming is an essential aspect of the beer brewing industry thus making the growing of hop plants an extremely profitable business. The shipping of hop rhizomes to be planted is a more efficient process then the selling and planting of a fully grown plant due to the large size of hop vines and also as it will allow for the roots to adjust to the surrounding soil.
Though farming of rhizomes can be extremely successful the initial cost and purchase of rhizomes would be unfeasible for Nepalese citizens (Morgan, 2015). Initial cost and upkeep of the farm is extremely expensive making it unmanaged with the average Nepalese citizen’s income thus resulting in rhizomes being an unrealistic export idea to Nepal (Sirrine, Lizotte, Brown, 2014). Though majority of citizens would be unable to afford a hop farming business some of the wealthy citizens or already existing hop farms may be able to purchase a few Canadian grown Hops for home brewing or the start of a small business. Cascade hop plants are widely known for the unique taste that beers obtain with the use of the plant. Cascades provide beer with a combination of spicy, citrus, and floral taste therefore appealing to almost every consumer’s taste buds (YCHHOPS, N/D). The cascade hop was originally bred in 1956 in Organ by the United States Department of Agriculture (U.S.D.A) (Hops of Pelham Inc, N/D). Due to being under experimentation cascade hops were not released for public sales by the U.S.D.A until 1972 therefore giving the department of agriculture over 15 years to perfect the product (YCHHOPS, N/D). This extensive time period to work on the plant allowed for the U.S.D.A to create one of the most popular hops on the market.
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2014, hopgoblin. http://www.hopgoblin.com/Cascade-Hop-Rhizomes-p/hr43900.htm |
http://buyhoprhizomes.com/product/cascade-hop-rhizome/
More ABout Cascade Hops
Nutritional/Brewing Value
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Cascade Hops in Ale Production
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Cascade hop plants are most commonly used for the production of different types of ale (Beer Legends, N/D). Ale is known as a malt beverage that is considered to be more bitter then other beers and contains a higher alcohol percentage (Dictionary, N/D). Cascade hops being used in ale production will provide the drink with a different colour than Nepal’s commonly drank lagers (Karki, 2014). Ales such as the ones made with cascade hops are darker than the normal larger and poses a reddish amber or gold colour (Beer store, N/D). The main difference other than colour between that of an ales and lager is that ale is produced by top yeast fermentation while larger is produced by bottom yeast fermentation (Beer store, N/D). This means that yeast used in ale production works better at a temperature of 10-20 degrees Celsius whereas yeast used in lagers are suitable between temperatures of 7-15 degrees Celsius (Beer advocate, N/D).
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N/D, Bernie w.https://berniewire.smugmug.com/Photography/Hop-ScreenSaver/
N/D, Clipart Kidhttp://www.clipartkid.com/beer-hops-guy-cliparts/
Important Facts About Hop Plants
Cascade hop plants reach full maturity during the middle of the growing season. Once the hops have reached the maturity level cascade hops will produce a low to moderate yield of approximately 1600-2000kg/hectare (Beer Legends, N/D). Once picked Cascade hop plants do not have a long self-life, only maintaining 48-52% of alpha acid content if stored at a temperature of 20 degrees Celsius for six months (Beer Legends, N/D). Therefor farmers must insure that a contract is made with a brewery so that already picked cones will not spoil if not sold and used before the six-month period has passed. Cascade hops are also fairly susceptible to diseases and pest so proper procedures must be followed to insure that crops are not lost. (Beer Legends, N/D). While purchasing hop rhizomes farmers should insure that only female rhizomes are purchased and planted as only female plants produce cones which is the part of the plant that is used within the brewing business. If male hop plants are in the same area as the female plants germination will occur resulting in the cones to produce seeds. Seeded cones are undesirable to breweries therefore resulting in farmers loosing profit as the plants will not be purchased (Rouge Farms, 2013). |
Cultiviation
Hop plants enter the growing season in the early spring therefore the plant should be planted after the last frost of the season. Planting of the rhizomes usually occurs in the month of March (Morgan, 2015). In order to have the best results for plant growth the rhizomes should be planted in holes that are approximately 2 feet in diameter and replenished with a large amount of compost placed on top of the soil (Oran, 2011). The compost will enrich the soil therefore providing the rhizomes with more nutrients to help them grow. Each rhizome will have individual plantation needs as some will need to be planted horizontally and others will need to be planted vertically depending on the location of each of the buds (Oran,2011). Once the rhizomes are planted it is important for a system of bines of roughly 30-feet in height are available for the vines to grow around (Oran,2011). After the sprouting of the rhizomes begins the translucent plant will soon become green due to chlorophyll being produced with sunlight reaching the now sprouted plant (Oran, 2011). Sunlight is extremely important in the growing of almost all plants; therefore, in order to insure that the hops get optimal sunlight it is important to choose the healthiest vine and wrap it in a clockwise position around the twine which was previously set up (Rogue Farms,2013). The training of each plant with twine will allow for the hops to receive optimal sunlight as the growth will be in the direction of the sun. The twine wires will also provide structural support of the large vines (Rogue Farms,2013). As the season continues on it is important that the plants receive a sufficient amount of watering each day and the soil remains damp (Oran, 2011). As the plants continue to mature and grow farmers must also take precautions to lower the chances of pest and diseases affecting the crops. |
Secondary Cost
In order to successfully run a hop farm, it is important that enough money is saved for fertilizers, pest control, and products to train the plants growth. A study performed by Michigan State university estimated that the initial cost of a 5 acre hop farm in the United States is around $13,668 USD (Sirrine et al., 2014). This price is not including the cost of labour, labour included cost to run a 5 acre hop farm results in the owners spending a total of approximately $68,340 USD (Sirrine et al., 2014). As years pass the cost of up keeping the facility will increase as each plant will require more than one string of twine to hold the vine up therefore adding to the yearly maintenance costs. The study also showed that after a five year growing period farmers made a revue of around $5,495 USD per acre of farm (Sirrine et al., 2014). If the initial and yearly cost of hop farming can be easily afforded, a large amount of profit can be made each year depending on the size of the crop yield.
(2014, Michigan State University)
Transportation
Transportation of the hop rhizomes is an extremely important part of the exporting process. In order to insure the rhizomes can successfully make the journey from Canada to Nepal trustworthy shipping companies must be used throughout the process. The rhizomes first must get picked up in Fenwick Ontario and travel to Toronto Pearson International Airport. AES Trucking and Delivering Company will transport the rhizomes from Fenwick to Toronto insuring that each plant will successfully make it to the airport and be able to continue on the long journey to Nepal. Once arrived at the airport the plants will then be loaded onto one of Priority Air Cargos planes and depart from Toronto to Tribhuvan International Airport in Nepal. Once the rhizomes have arrived in Nepal farmers will have the option to pick up the amount of plants order to lower the total shipping cost or companies such as Shangri-La Freight may be used to insure that the rhizomes arrive to each farm. Due to such a large number of rhizomes being needed to successfully start a hop farm shipping cost will be lowered as there will be a large quantity of rhizomes being shipped at once. Even with lower shipping prices it is still unlikely that farmers will be able to afford the cost to get the plants from Canada to the farms in Nepal.
Canada & Nepal
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Export Potiential
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Canadian Exports
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Conclusion
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