Our entire organization is guided by well-established quality and safety principles as well as invaluable feedback from all our hop growers, employees and brewing customers. Our purpose is to create, grow and protect value for all by developing first-class hop varieties, relentlessly pursuing quality and building meaningful relationships.
Lean Manufacturing
Our production facilities in Yakima and Sunnyside, Washington, operate using the principles of Lean Manufacturing, which empower more than 80 front-line personnel to affect changes that reduce waste and improve quality and consistency. Team members have received extensive training in Lean Manufacturing and Kaizen process-improvement methods.
Quality Management
Yakima Chief Hops was an early adopter of ISO 9001 in 1997, and the first hop company to implement an ISO 14001 certified environmental management system in 2010 to specify, control and provide for continuous improvement in the way we work throughout our business. By actively applying these internationally recognized principles, we have developed quality and environmental management systems certified to ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 standards.
Food Safety
In order to prevent contamination that could pose a threat to human health, Yakima Chief Hops is fully committed to a risk-based approach to assessing, improving and teaching food safety at all hop harvest and production facilities. We do this by applying our Green Chief® farm quality management program and Current Good Manufacturing Practices (CGMP) in compliance with the US Food and Drug Administration. We also employ an ISO-integrated Hazards Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) system for all areas of production.
