hop farmer
Role lens
Do you enjoy working outdoors and have an interest in the brewing industry? As a hop farmer, you’ll play a vital role in the production of a key ingredient for beer, from planting to harvest.
Hop farmers are responsible for the entire lifecycle of hop plants, ensuring a high-quality crop for breweries. Daily tasks can vary significantly depending on the season, but generally involve monitoring plant health, managing soil conditions, controlling pests and diseases, and operating machinery. The work is physically demanding and requires a strong understanding of agricultural practices and the specific needs of hop plants.
- • Planting and cultivating hop bines (the climbing stems of the hop plant).
- • Managing irrigation, fertilization, and pest/disease control.
- • Operating machinery for tasks like trellising, harvesting, and drying.
Where this occupation is in demand
Reported labour shortages and surpluses, by year. Published for occupation groups, not for individual job titles.
Deeper colour: reported the same way in more consecutive years.
Figures cover Market-oriented skilled agricultural workers — 27 jobs including this one.
In shortage: Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Finland and 5 more.
Longest-running shortage: Netherlands, 4 years.
Select a place on the map to see its figures.
About this source›
Source: ELA/EURES labour shortages and surpluses. Readings are published at occupation-group level, and cover Europe. Editions differ in annex layout and country coverage, so a change between years does not always mean the labour market changed. Countries in grey were not reported, which is not the same as being in balance.
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Could hop farmer fit you?
Answer three quick questions. This is not a full assessment — it is a teaser to help you decide whether to compare your profile.
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Future Outlook for hop farmer
The outlook for hop farmer reflects a balanced mix of automation exposure and durable, human-led work.
How are these scores calculated?
The Resilience Score (0–100) estimates how structurally protected this occupation is from automation and AI disruption, based on task-level analysis. Higher scores mean more human-judgment-intensive tasks. AI Exposure shows the estimated percentage of task hours that current AI capabilities could affect. These are model-derived structural indicators, not predictions about individual job security.
How could hop farmer change as AI adoption grows?
This role is likely to change gradually, with AI supporting selected tasks rather than replacing the whole occupation.
Illustrative scenario based on task automatability — not a forecast. Values are rounded the further ahead you look.
How could hop farmer change as AI adoption grows?
This role is likely to change gradually, with AI supporting selected tasks rather than replacing the whole occupation.
Illustrative scenario based on task automatability — not a forecast. Values are rounded the further ahead you look.
How AI may change this role
Deterministic, model-based interpretation of current role signals — not a guarantee of replacement.
What still depends on people
- supervise hygiene procedures in agricultural settings
- create crop protection plans
- prevent crop disorders
Where AI may become a co-pilot
- assess crop damage
- monitor crops
- maintain storage facilities
Tasks most exposed to automation
No single task here is highly automatable yet.
Vital Signs & AI Vectors
AI Exposure Vectors
0-100%Exposure to physical automation, robotics, and sensor-driven task displacement
Exposure to AI-assisted analysis, pattern recognition, and predictive modelling tasks
Exposure to content generation, creative augmentation, and large language model tools
Exposure to workflow automation, decision-support software, and process digitisation
Technical Details
NexFuture v3.0 estimates automation exposure natively from ESCO essential-skill groups, weighted by skill mass and calibrated against expert anchors. Scores are probabilistic estimates, not guarantees. See the NexFuture Methodology White Paper for full details.
Measures automation exposure. It does not measure pay, demand, or how many jobs exist near you.
What people in this role usually do
Agriculture
A typical day as a hop farmer
09 09:00 · Morning assess crop damage
10 10:30 · Mid-morning create crop protection plans
12 12:00 · Midday cultivate hops
14 14:00 · Afternoon advise on beer production
15 15:30 · Late afternoon execute fertilisation
17 17:00 · Wrap-up grow plants
Task order is illustrative. Individual days vary.
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ingredients for beer production
Basic ingredients of beer, which consist of water, a starch source such as malted barley, brewer's yeast to produce the fermentation and a flavouring such as hops.
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plant propagation
Types of different propagation methods, materials and seeds and their criteria for health and quality.
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crop production principles
Principles in growing crops, the natural cycle, nursing of nature, growth conditions and principles of organic and sustainable production. Quality criterias and requirements of seeds, plants and crop.
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horticulture principles
The standard horticultural practices, including but not limited to planting, pruning, corrective pruning, and fertilisation.
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organic farming
Principles, techniques and regulations of organic farming. Organic farming or ecological agriculture is an agricultural production method, which places a strong emphasis on environmental protection and ecological balance.
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plant disease control
Types and features of diseases in plants and crops. Different kinds control methods, activities using conventional or biological methods taking into account the type of plant or crop, environmental and climate conditions and health and safety regulations. Storage and handling of products.
- agritourism
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monitor crops
Monitor the growth of the crops to ensure the crops are free from diseases, harmful chemicals and organisms.
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cultivate hops
Carry out the cultivation of hops for the production of beer and other purposes.
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monitor fields
Monitor orchards, fields and production areas to forecast when crops will be fully grown. Estimate how much damage the weather may cause to crops.
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manage crop production
Perform crop production duties such as planning, tilling, planting, fertilising, cultivating, spraying, and harvesting. Supervise all steps of the crop production and ranging process, including planting, fertilising, harvesting, herding as well as controlling pests or weeds.
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nurse plants
Determine the need for nursing activities and carry out nursing by cultivating, maintaining, watering and spraying the plants and trees manually or using appropriate equipment, taking into account the plant species and following safety requirements.
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grow plants
Carry out plant growing activities. Carry out grow control considering the required terms and conditions for specific plant type.
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harvest crop
Mow, pick or cut agricultural crop products manually or using appropriate tools and machinery. Taking into account the relevant quality criteria of products, hygiene prescriptions and using the appropriate methods.
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propagate plants
Carry out propagation activities by appling appropriate propagation methods such as grafted cutting propagation or generative propagation considering the plant type. Carry out propagation control considering the required terms and conditions for specific plant type.
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operate hand pruning equipment
Efficiently perform hand pruning by using specific pruning tools like shears, lopping shears, saw, a small pocket scale to weigh the pruned material, and twine.
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maintain storage facilities
Maintain or ensure the maintenance of cleaning equipment, heating or air conditioning of storage facilities and the temperature of premises.
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prevent crop disorders
Advise on how to prevent and limit particular crop disorders with the appropriate methods. Select corrective treatments.
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supervise hygiene procedures in agricultural settings
Ensure that hygiene procedures in agricultural settings are followed, taking into account the regulations of specific areas of action e.q. livestock, plants, local farm products, etc.
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execute fertilisation
Carry out fertilisation tasks by hand or using appropriate equipment according to fertilisation instructions taking into account the environmental, health and safety regulations and procedures.
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use gardening equipment
Use gardening equipment such as clippers, sprayers, mowers, chainsaws, complying to health and safety regulations.
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assess crop damage
Identify and evaluate damage to crops due to disorders, adverse physical soil conditions, unsuitable pH, nutrient imbalances and deficiencies, the misuse of crop protection materials, or extreme weather factors.
Skill DNA
Work personality traits and values that define this role
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Where does hop farmer fit?
Similarity scores based on skill overlap from ESCO data.
Frequently asked questions
- What level of physical fitness is required to be a hop farmer?
- Hop farming is a physically demanding occupation. It requires prolonged periods of standing, bending, lifting, and working outdoors in various weather conditions. Stamina and strength are essential.
- Are there different varieties of hops, and does a farmer specialize in specific types?
- Yes, there are many different varieties of hops, each contributing unique flavors and aromas to beer. Some hop farmers specialize in growing specific varieties based on market demand and regional suitability. Understanding the characteristics of different hop varieties is crucial.
- What are the common work arrangements for hop farmers?
- While many hop farmers are employed by larger agricultural operations or breweries, it’s also common to find hop farmers who operate their own self-business. The majority of positions are employee-based, but entrepreneurship in this field is viable.
- Hop Farmer — is there a shortage in Europe?
- Yes. In the 2025 ELA/EURES edition, a shortage was reported in 9 of the 13 European countries that assessed this occupation group: Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Greece and 5 more. Netherlands has reported one for 4 consecutive years. These assessments are published per occupation group rather than per job title.
- Hop Farmer — what does it pay in the United States?
- $35,690 a year at the median, as of 2025-05. State medians run from $21,960 to $55,180. Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is a United States figure and not a projection for Europe.