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Wheelers in front of the Public Hops Certification Centre in Tyršová Street No. 290, Žatec, beginning of the 20 century

were simultaneously used to redry the hops delivered The first marking, of the locality origin of the hops, was
from the countryside for storing. Multi-storey buildings conducted directly in the hop growing villages, where the
were gradually equipped with electric lifts and hydraulic officials of the marking centre attached seals containing
presses. their official printing and marking labels stating the
country, region, municipality and common number to the 131
The protection of hops constituted as an independent sewn-up bales filled with dried hops. For every such sack
field of activity in the interwar period. The findings from and accompanying list, a weight certificate was prepared.
natural and technical sciences were systematically used Other technological procedures, or actions, on hops
and applied in hop growing and processing. After the marked in this manner, such as drying, sorting, sulphuring
severe demand crisis, the self-governing hop growing and repackaging, could only be performed in the hop
organisations came to recognise the inevitability of risks warehouses and hop packaging rooms of the hop traders,
to hop growing and trading. Gradually, suitable domestic such as can be found in the nominated property in Žatec,
and international institutions, securing a decrease in and only with the consent, and under the inspection of
potential risks for growers and traders, were formed. Last the marking centre representative.
but not least, there was a significant trend in the interwar
period of replacing the people and animal labour force The particular marking centre and other monitoring
with engines and various mechanisms during hop growing authorities had the right to enter the hop warehouses
and processing. An Act concerning obligatory hop marking and hop packaging rooms at any time and inspect the
and processing, and the extent of hop growing, passed documentation, so as to detect whether prohibited hop
into law in Czechoslovakia in 1934. It was a consequence adulteration was taking place.
of the need to prevent a crisis in production and demand
in the hop industry in order to boost Czech hop growing When the hops in the packaging room and hop warehouse
and make the hop growing areas more precise. were ready for dispatch to the brewery, they received
the compulsory certification marking from the marking
According to this law, any hops grown in the specified centre, as well as a seal with a particular stencil printing.
areas was subject to obligatory marking, marked The certificate, which was a written document, included
according to their area of origin, and certified by the information about the production municipality, variety,
public marking centre of that particular area. This duty sulphuring, repackaging, and total weight, of the hops, as
was imposed regardless of whether the hops were to be the certificate could be issued for as many as 50 pieces of
exported or used domestically. The authorities of the packaging filled with hops.
public hop marking centre in Žatec and in the eastern
part of the today’s Ústecký Region in towns of Úštěk and In 1938, František Zima (1883–1961) and Václav Zázvorka
Dubá watched and inspected all areas of the hop trade (1903–1976) released a publication called "Hop growing"
itself and the hops route from the grower to the consumer. intended as a textbook for economic colleges.