More local farmers growing hops to keep up with breweries

MISHAWAKA, Ind. -As more breweries pop up across Michiana, a new market worth millions of dollars for local farmers is starting to catch on: growing hops.

As it stands, most breweries import their hops from states like Washington and Oregon because there aren’t enough local farmers growing them. But more growers are starting to hop on the bandwagon, knowing hops could quickly turn into their cash crop.

Evil Czech Brewery just opened its Mishawaka location in March and already has 15 craft beers on tap. Head brewer Scott Ciampa is concocting a new recipe, but for a 600-gallon batch of beer, he’ll need a lot of hops: 50 pounds.

Because there’s a nation-wide shortage of hops, Ciampa has to order them years in advance.

“Hops are in such high demand that we have to contract them, I have some hops contracted all the way through 2016,” Ciampa says.

The brewer says he imports them from growers in the Pacific Northwest, but he’d prefer local hops, because fresher tastes better.

“The closer I can get ingredients, the better,” Ciampa says. “Not only does it save money, but you kind of know where it’s coming from, you get to talk to the people firsthand, and really get a feel for the product.”

Farmer Steve Lecklider is ahead of the trend. Lecklider started growing hops four years ago at Lehman’s Apple Orchard in Niles.

“The hops start in the spring and they can grow up to a foot a day,” Lecklider says, adding southwestern Michigan’s climate is a good fit for the crop. “It seems like anywhere you can grow really good fruit, you can grow hops.”

Lecklider uses his crop for his own batches of hard cider, what he calls their “hoppy cider.”

But if he wanted to sell them, he could rake in profits.

Hop Growers of America, a non-profit group, estimates farmers earned an average of $3.60/pound of hops last year, but some varieties can bring in three times that amount.

“Ten to fifteen dollars,” Lecklider says, “and it varies on the variety of hop.”

Some farmers have even developed their own private varieties, and “protects” them so no one else can grow them, similar to copyrighting.

According to the National Brewers Association, Indiana had 46 craft breweries across the state in 2011. That number grew to 63 in 2013.The association also estimates the craft beer industry has an economic impact of nearly $610 million in Indiana and more than $1 billion in Michigan.

So as long as people keep ordering beer, local farmers can start to drink in the profits.

“The more hop farmers, the easier it will be for breweries to make the beers that they wanna make,” Ciampa says.