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Fire Burns Hop Warehouse
As much as 4% of American hops were lost to a fire last week in Washington’s Yakima Valley. S.S. Steiner Inc.’s 40,000 square foot warehouse was incinerated in the fire, sending smoke and pungent smells throughout the valley. Although yet to be completely determined, the fire may have a substantial impact on breweries throughout the United States.
S.S. Steiner Inc., one of the four largest hop providers in the Yakima Valley, called the fire department in the early morning on Monday, October 2nd. Fire crews arrived quickly and tore down the warehouse’s metal siding and began dousing the flames. In all, seven fire crews were needed to put out the fire. The rapid response and great effort of the firemen was admirable, however the entire crop was lost in the blaze.
Total damage, in terms of loss of crops, has been estimated by S.S. Steiner Inc. as being between $3.5 - $4 million. Throw in the loss of the warehouse building and production equipment inside, and S.S. Steiner Inc. may have lost as much as $5 million in the fire.
Experts say the impact on the American beer industry cannot yet be determined. S.S. Steiner Inc. has yet to release the type of hops that were burnt in the fire. Given certain markets of specific brews, the loss could be very serious for many companies. If the hops burnt in the fire were already in short supply, the fire may drive up costs.
S.S. Steiner Inc. has said the fire will not be catastrophic for their company. They have multiple warehouses thoughout the state of Washington. Although a substantial blow to the hop provider, spokesman for the company said they will bounce back.
