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Anyone looking for an answer to when craft’s current era of compounding hurdles and declines will come to an end received a reality check Wednesday during Brewers Association (BA) president and CEO Bart Watson’s state of the industry address, held at the start of Day 2 of the Craft Brewers Conference (CBC) in Indianapolis.
Around 10,000 industry members are expected to make the trip to Indianapolis for the 2025 Craft Brewers Conference and BrewExpo America (April 28 to May 1). The gathering takes place against a backdrop of growing headwinds for craft breweries and an overhaul of CBC’s host organization, the Brewers Association.
Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits (SGWS) has consistently charged independent retailers as much as 12% to 67% more than national and regional chains for the same products, according to newly unsealed redactions in the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) price discrimination case against the distributor.
At present, malt- and sugar-based RTDs, such as Mark Anthony Brands’ White Claw and Boston Beer Company’s Truly Hard Seltzer, can be sold at beer distributors, which offer retail beer sales. Wine-based RTDs are available at Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board-run (PLCB) stores and off-premise retailers licensed to sell wine. However, spirits-based RTDs are only available via the PLCB’s stores.
Under SB 623, which was referred to the Senate law and justice committee on May 3, breweries and wholesalers would have to revisit their distribution contracts every five years. If the contract cannot be renegotiated after five years, the parties must enter mediation with a mutually agreed upon mediator or, failing that, a mediator appointed by “a court of competent jurisdiction.”
Brewers Association chief economist Bart Watson dives into craft beer’s 2020 trends and looks ahead to 2021 on the latest edition of Brewbound Data Club. Watson discusses brewery opening and closing numbers, packaging format trends, and the growth of beyond beer offerings by small craft producers.
Registration for the Brewers Association’s (BA) annual Craft Brewers Conference (CBC) and BrewExpo America opens Tuesday, May 4, and the trade group has provided an overview of safety measures for the trade show.
Minnesota brewers’ efforts to remove a ban on growler and beer to-go sales for larger craft breweries have fallen short; meanwhile, legislation that would allow Texas restaurants to continue to sell beer, wine and mixed drinks with takeout orders is now in the hands of Gov. Greg Abbott; and more news from the states.
Suzie’s Brewery, maker of Suzie’s Organic Hard Seltzer, and Anheuser-Busch InBev agreed earlier this week to settle the Oregon company’s lawsuit against the world’s largest beer manufacturer for allegedly engaging in deceptive advertising practices for its Michelob Ultra Organic Seltzer brand.
Matagrano, Inc. has filed a lawsuit against Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. alleging the Chico-headquartered craft brewery breached the companies’ contract when it terminated its relationship with the South San Francisco-based wholesaler on April 2. In a lawsuit filed in Superior Court of the state of California on April 23, 20 years to the day after Sierra Nevada signed on with Matagrano for distribution, the wholesaler alleged that “as a result of defendant’s breach of the distributorship agreement, Matagrano has been damaged in an amount not yet ascertained, but which exceeds $8 million.”
White Claw Hard Seltzer and Mike’s Hard Lemonade maker Mark Anthony Brands has filed a lawsuit against Vital Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Bang Energy LLC alleging copyright infringement in U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York. In the lawsuit filed April 26, Mark Anthony argues that the defendants’ MIXX flavored malt beverages infringe on its MXD Cocktail Company flavored malt beverages and may cause consumer confusion.
The National Beer Wholesaler Association’s (NBWA) annual legislative conference reconvened, albeit virtually, a year after the pandemic forced the cancellation of the 2020 event.
California craft brewers had a rougher 2020 than the overall industry, as in-state volume production declined 11% compared to 9% nationwide, Brewers Association (BA) chief economist Bart Watson reported last week during his presentation at the California Craft Brewers Association’s spring summit.
Anheuser-Busch InBev has forged a master distributor agreement with Canteen Spirits, while its growth and innovation arm ZX Ventures has made an investment in the 2-year-old ready-to-drink canned cocktail brand.
The loss of higher-margin on-premise consumption cost the beer industry more than $20 billion in 2020, National Beer Wholesalers Association chief economist Lester Jones reported yesterday during a webinar. “Volumes went up a little bit, maybe 0.5-1% up, but spending shifted dramatically,” Jones said. “
California Craft Brewers Association (CCBA) executive director Lori Ajax and lobbyist Chris Walker shared the progress the organization has made on behalf of the state’s craft breweries yesterday during what board chair Lynne Weaver called the “second and hopefully last” virtual conference. California is home to 958 craft breweries, which produced 3.3 million barrels in 2020, making it No. 1 in craft beer production nationwide.
The COVID-19 pandemic driven shutdown of on-premise service at bars and restaurants led to a big but expected cut in draft packaging last year, according to the 2020 “Package Mix Report” shared by the Beer Institute and compiled by the National beer Wholesalers Association’s Department of Industry Affairs.
