Trade Groups

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.

Sierra Nevada has announced it will reopen its breweries in Chico, California, and Mills River, North Carolina, to the public in May after what will be a 14-month hiatus from on-site service, according to a report in the Chico Enterprise-Record. Philadelphia-headquartered, on-demand delivery platform goPuff announced the completion of a $1.15 billion fundraising round earlier this week.

Several pieces of legislation working their ways through Congress would bring much needed relief to the hospitality industry — including breweries, brewpubs and taprooms — as they continue to struggle during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Off-premise beer category dollar sales increased 15.7% year-to-date through January 23, compared to the same period last year, market research firm NielsenIQ reported. For the four weeks ending January 23 (which includes December 28-31, 2020), off-premise dollars sales of the beer category — which includes core beer, flavored malt beverages, hard seltzers, ciders and malt liquor — increased 14.2%, indicating slight acceleration after January 1.

Federal excise tax cuts for brewers and importers have finally been made permanent. After nearly a week of uncertainty, President Donald Trump on Sunday signed into law the $900 billion economic relief package and $1.4 trillion government funding bill Congress passed last week.

Permanent excise tax cuts for brewers and importers was just a signature away. However, getting pen to paper on the $900 billion economic relief package and a $1.4 trillion government funding bill passed by Congress is now in question after President Donald Trump unexpectedly pushed back against the measures.

A permanent reduction in the federal excise tax for alcohol producers and importers is a signature away. The U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate have both signed off on the $900 billion economic relief package, which includes language from the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act (CBMTRA), as well as additional Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funding for small businesses, among other measures.

The temporary federal excise tax cuts enjoyed by brewers and importers over the last three years are on the verge of being made permanent. Congress has included language from the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act (CBMTRA) in the $900 billion COVID-19 relief package that is expected to pass in the coming days.

The National Beer Wholesalers Association’s (NBWA) Beer Purchasers’ Index — which tracks wholesalers’ monthly buying behaviors — expanded in October 2020 with an index of 76. Meanwhile, year-to-date through September, U.S. brewers have shipped more than 126.5 million barrels of beer, a decline of 0.9% (or more than 1.1 million barrels), according to domestic tax paid estimates from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) shared by the Beer Institute.

New Belgium will wade into the increasingly crowded hard seltzer segment next year with Fruit Smash, Brewbound has confirmed. Massachusetts’ Trillium Brewing reopened its popular beer garden on Boston’s Rose Kennedy Greenway today for its fourth season.

The ongoing economic pain points caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent shut downs of on-premise retailers have led to severe consequences for the beer industry and adjacent businesses.

A majority of Americans support extending federal excise tax cuts that were enacted as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in 2017, according to a survey commissioned by industry trade group the Beer Institute (BI).

July 2020 marked the second consecutive month of increased year-over-year shipments, according to the Beer Institute (BI), which shared unofficial estimates of domestic tax paid shipments compiled by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB).

Cans are a hot topic for the nation’s brewers, as the COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of bars and restaurants for several months. Without on-premise venues to visit, Americans began to drink more beer at home, and cans picked up the slack in the market left by draft beer. Ball, the world’s largest manufacturer of aluminum cans, said inventory is likely to be sold out or severely tight for the remainder of the year.