According to a research published in the journal Nature Communications, climate change is altering the quality and taste of beer, scientists have warned.
The study revealed that the quality of European hops, which gives beer its unique bitter taste, is declining. The sudden change in climate and hotter, longer and drier summers are worsening the situation and could lead to the beverage becoming more expensive.
Researchers are predicting a 4-18% drop in hop yields in European regions by 2050 and are urging farmers to adjust their farming techniques.
Hops are the fourth ingredient in the beer brewing process apart from water, yeast and malt. There was also a drop of nearly 20% in some key hop-growing areas, according to the study.
The scientists, from the Czech Academy of Sciences (CAS) and Cambridge University, blamed the reduction on drier conditions, probably due to climate change in recent years.
"Failure to adapt will jeopardise the profitability of hop growing in some areas. The consequence will be lower production and a higher price for brewers,” Martin Mozny, co-author of the paper and research scientist at CAS said.
The price of beer has also seen rise of 13% since the Covid-19 pandemic. The scientists have also found that higher and more extreme temperatures have led to a reduction in the alpha bitter acids of hops, which influence the flavour of beer.
Despite global efforts to combat climate change, greenhouse gas emissions from human activities have continued to increase temperatures.
As per the research, farmers have been working to improve yields and they are taking some steps such as moving farms higher up valleys where there is more rainfall, and installing irrigation systems. However, scientists say that it will be necessary to expand the area used to grow aroma hops by 20%, to compensate for future decline.
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