Rule would allow free movement of hops material among Idaho, Oregon, Washington
BOISE — Idaho lawmakers are being asked to approve a temporary rule that would allow hops planting stock to move freely among Idaho, Oregon and Washington.
It would create a common quarantine area within that three-state region and require hops material coming from other states to be certified disease-free.
The change would make Idaho’s rules for hops material consistent with similar rules adopted by Oregon and Washington in recent years, said Lloyd Knight, administrator of the Idaho State Department of Agriculture’s Plant Industries Division.
“It draws a circle around the Northwest and allows better movement of hops within that three-state area, and has additional requirements for hops coming in from out of that area,” Knight said.
Washington, Oregon and Idaho rank 1-3 in hops production in the United States and the industry in those three states is closely aligned, Knight said.
“We have a lot of planting stock that goes back and forth between the three states and our diseases are all consistent within that three-state area,” he said. “(Industry) just wants to be protected from diseases outside that three-state area.”
The ISDA approved the temporary rule at the request of the Idaho hop industry in September but lawmakers still have to OK it.
“Previously, it was a pain in the rear for anybody that wanted to bring roots in,” said Idaho Hop Commission Administrator Mike Gooding. “Now a single person can bring roots in from Washington or Oregon without any problem.”
Besides allowing planting stock to move more freely within the three-state area, he said, the Northwest hop industry also wants to protect itself from diseases that could be brought in from other states.
At the top of that list is the powdery mildew fungus.
The Northwest hop industry has only been able to substantiate a single mating type of powdery mildew, said Gooding, who grows hops near Parma, Idaho.
The new rule requires any hop green matter from outside the region to have tested negative for certain diseases, including powdery mildew.
“If we were to allow other vegetative material in, there’s a possibility we could get the second mating type in, which would then lead to quicker resistance against the regiments that we have developed for powdery mildew control,” Gooding said. “We’re killing two birds with one stone. We’re making it easier for people to bring in new varieties to try and we’re also keeping the second mating type of powdery mildew at bay.”