FEARS that the English hop is going out of fashion have been dismissed by a Kent brewer.

Concern for the native varieties reached a head earlier this month when one of the most historic hop farms, Lily Hoo, at Paddock Wood, harvested its last crop.

But Shepherd Neame's production director Ian Dixon says there are signs that the country's hop growing industry is turning a corner.

The Faversham brewery uses only Kentish hops for its beers, which include popular brands such as Bishop's Finger and Spitfire.

Mr Dixon said: "The volume of beer we are producing is growing therefore we are using more and more Kentish hops.

"There is only one beer that we brew that does not use Kentish hops. That is Whitstable Bay organic ale. Only a very few hop growers grow organic hops so we use New Zealand hops for that.

"Spitfire ale uses more hops than a lager and the part of our business growing particularly fast is ale," he said.