This Year's Hop Harvest in Slovakia Down in Volume But High in Quality

Nemsova, 28 August (TASR) - This year's hops harvest will be 10 to 15 percent lower in volume than last year's, primarily due to a short period of intense heat, but the quality will be higher, Branislav Zidek, chairman of agricultural cooperative Vlara in Nemsova (Trencin region), told a press conference on Thursday that was also attended by Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Richard Takac (Smer-SD). "Although we aren't seeing the yields that we had planned, it's a positive thing that the alpha acid content in the hops is sufficiently high, exceeding the standard," said Zidek. Minister Takac sees a great opportunity in hop cultivation and in expanding hop-growing fields because it is economically advantageous. "In terms of weather and climatic conditions, Slovakia is absolutely ideal for hop cultivation," said Takac. Commenting on the future of the agricultural sector not only in Slovakia, but also the EU, and with regard to Ukraine joining the EU, he noted that the diversification and transformation of this sector will be necessary in Slovakia as well. In comparison with other EU countries, hops are the most supported commodity in the new strategic plan in terms of coupled payments in Slovakia, reaching some €700 per hectare. Zidek believes that, with the expansion of hop fields, this segment could become one of the pillars that will bolster the development of Slovakia's agricultural sector. In this connection, Takac stressed that his ministry will seek every possible way to ensure that hop cultivation areas will be expanded. According to Zidek, the Vlara agriculture cooperative has managed to attract a relatively young team and is working towards finishing off its products, as distributing hop pellets to breweries would be "a thousand times better and more efficient than selling hop cones". jrg/df