Striking: hops in bloom weeks earlier

Hops are one of the most important raw materials in beer production. But if a male plant fertilizes a female hop plant, the quality of the drink diminishes. For more than fifty years there has been a legal ban on male hop plants within a radius of 20 kilometers around a plantation. A male hop plant can be recognized by the panicles around the flowers. Anyone who sees it can report this to the city of Poperinge.