Brewers Association

The Brewers Association, dedicated to small and independent American brewers— recently announced an agreement with the USDA-Agricultural Research Service to fund public hop breeding for the purpose of developing and releasing disease resistant aroma hop cultivars into the public domain, in support of hop growing efforts throughout the U.S. The trust agreement between the Brewers Association and USDA provides funding for a program located in Washington and Oregon to leverage significant existing academic and operational infrastructure.

Chris Swersey, is a supply chain specialist and works for the Brewers Association in Boulder, Colorado specializes in the hop and malting barley crops. "Public hop breeding creates benefits for a broad range of groups within the hop and brewing industries," said Chris Swersey, supply chain specialist for the Brewers Association. "Research to develop and release hop cultivars with no intellectual property protection ensures that all growers have access to high quality, disease-resistant cultivars they need to sustain production at levels required by brewers. In the long-term, this important program will fuel efforts of existing legacy growers as well as nascent hop growing industries throughout the U.S. The program will also fulfill an essential stewardship strategy by providing foundational germplasm for public and private breeding programs. Even the smallest brewers will be able to source ingredients they need to produce that truly local pint."