GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Researchers with the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences provided an update on its research project aimed at growing the plant used to brew beer.
“We are trying to be able to trick the hop plant into thinking it’s getting more daylight by putting them into green houses with superior lighting sources,” UF assistant professor Katherine Thompson-Witrick said. “Especially with the citrus greening issue that we have and are continuously losing crops due to that, this allows us to diversify them.”
Thompson-Witrick said their goal isn’t to compete directly with areas of Washington — which is known for the best conditions to grow the hop plant — but it could help reduce the costs for Florida’s growing micro-brewing industry.
“In support of local businesses, if we are able to successfully find ways to increase yield, transportation costs would also be lower for actually moving the products around the state,” she said.
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Charles Frizzell opened Broken Strings Brewery in Orlando back in 2016.
“I already had an interest in it because I knew my grandfather was a brewer, so I knew if he could do it, I could do it,” Frizzell said.
Frizzell and other brewers in Central Florida said the hop pellets they purchase are from Yakima, Washington. If the plant can grow successfully here, many said customers would also support the product.
“We try to use as many local ingredients as we can,” Frizzle said.
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