In Zhytomyr Oblast, there is an active season of collecting hops, which is grown by 13 enterprises of the region. This year's hop harvest is not inferior to last year's, which confirms the stability of the region's agricultural sector. This is reported by Suspilne.

As Nataliya Arendarchuk, head of the department of agro-industrial development of the Zhytomyr regional military administration, noted, 75% of all hop plantations in Ukraine are located in the Zhytomyr region. The areas under hops are gradually growing and currently amount to about 300-400 hectares.

Arendarchuk added that in 2022, during the war, the area of ​​hop plantations was reduced to 200 hectares. However, in 2023, the area increased to 300 hectares, and the gross harvest reached 390 tons with a yield of 1.3 tons per hectare. This year, a collection of 390-400 tons is expected, which indicates stability and positive trends in the development of the industry.

At the moment, hops are harvested at the Vetrokiivka-Hmyl enterprise, which grows 18 varieties of this culture. The director of the enterprise, Ivan Panchenko, said that the process of collecting hops is carried out with the help of a special operator. The operator manages the process of picking hops and placing them in the trailer, after which the hops are transported to the harvester, where the further harvesting process takes place.

After harvesting, the hops are delivered to the warehouse, where they are sorted, cleaned of excess parts and dried. Agronomist Ivan Kovenko noted that under favorable conditions it is possible to collect up to one and a half tons of dry hops per working day.

Thus, Zhytomyr Oblast continues to play an important role in the production of hops in Ukraine, ensuring a stable harvest and maintaining the traditions of this important agricultural culture.