asked the Minister for Agriculture whether he is aware of the difficulty experienced by persons desiring to import hops in obtaining supplies from foreign sources, and, whether, in view of the likelihood of foreign supplies being entirely unobtainable in the near future, he will state what steps have been taken to ascertain whether hops can be grown successfully in this country and what prospects there are of satisfying home requirements from native sources in the present year and in 1943.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Supply of Hops.
I am aware of the position as regards the import of hops. Experiments were conducted during the four seasons 1935 to 1938 with a view to ascertaining whether hops could be grown economically in this country, and a report on the results of these experiments was published in my Department's Journal (Volume 36, No. 2). The results point to the conclusion that the growing of hops on a commercial scale in this country does not offer any possibility of being an economic proposition, and that supplies of home-grown hops cannot be reckoned on in any difficulty that may arise in procuring imports.