Packaging Trends
The history of package mix in beer has been a dance of the respective market shares of cans and bottles, each growing and declining in response to long-term trends.
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No brewery works in a silo. Brewers Association staff, including Chief Economist Bart Watson, keep close tabs on the statistics and trends that affect the entire craft brewing community. Keep up with the latest numbers to ensure the success and growth of your business using the resources in this category.
The history of package mix in beer has been a dance of the respective market shares of cans and bottles, each growing and declining in response to long-term trends.
Craft brewers continued many of the 2018 trends through 2019, but the future now has a giant question mark for many breweries in the era of COVID-19.
A crosscurrent is developing among craft beer consumers: a demand for simpler more refreshing beers that increasingly complement a healthier lifestyle.
As the growth of craft beer as a category has tapered off, some observers have lamented that frewer craft brewers seem to truly innovate, with many now following trends.
Microbreweries are now the primary engine in craft growth. Seventy-eight percent of craft beer growth in 2016 came from breweries that sold fewer than 15,000 barrels.
Craft beer volume grew 6 percent last year, but those gains weren’t spread around evenly. Fifteen of the top 25 craft breweries saw their volumes drop over 2015.
The rise in craft beer has, for the most part, masked the slow deterioration of what is still the largest segment of the U.S. beer business.
Brewpubs were up nearly 15 percent in 2016, and this strong performance is welcome news since the segment is at the very heart of the craft beer industry.
The craft brewing industry has reached a new level of competitiveness, with increasing competition within craft and more than two brewery openings per day.
Several breweries are finding new ways to get customers engaged and involved, including taste testing and rating experimental beers and recipes.