HOP Products Australia (HPA) has finished picking this season's hops harvest and is expected to begin processing in its new multi-million dollar state-of-the-art Hops Central facility in Myrtleford from as early as this week.
HPA Victorian farm manager Aaron Bailey said both yield and quality of the hops harvested throughout the Alpine Valleys was good.
"The conditions have been perfect for the most part, with warm and dry days, and calm and cool nights," he said.
"HPA’s Victorian hop harvest started on March 5 and since then we’ve been operating 24 hours a day, six days a week.
"To meet the required throughput, our team of 45 permanent staff grows by around 240 casual staff over harvest."
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HPA's Hop Central facility has been developed at the former Tobacco Cooperative of Victoria (TVC) property, with works over the pasts two years seeing the expansive four separate buildings, totalling more than 22,000 square metres, now home to a pellet plant, packaging line and cold storage facility.
HPA, which is Australia’s largest hops grower, aims to effectively double its former processing capacity, with the new Myrtleford facility to support the centralisation of pelleting and packaging hops from HPA’s Victorian and Tasmanian growing regions, which will total 900 hectares or an estimated 2400 metric tonnes.
HPA’s brewing customers include locals in the High Country brewery system, national craft breweries, as well as international craft breweries.
Approximately 40 per cent of the crop will remain in the domestic market, with the remaining 60 per cent exported to craft beer markets around the world.
HPA’s board members will visit Myrtleford in late April for a scheduled board meeting and hold an official opening ceremony for the facility.
