Germany is once again the world’s top hops producer – snatching the title from the United States after nine years, the German Hops Growers Association reported on Tuesday. The change came as a result of a decline in the area devoted to production of the crop in different countries. The German area under hops cultivation declined by 340 hectares to 20,300 hectares, whereas in the US, the fall was by 4,500 hectares to 17,850 hectares. Large stocks of hops have led to falling prices, worrying German producers. Production goes almost exclusively to the brewing sector, and beer sales are in global …