Craft Beer Category Continues to Crank
Brewer’s Association reports growth of 7.1% in first half of year
The Brewer’s Association reported this week that sales of domestic craft beer is up 7.1% through the first half of 2005 versus the same period last year.
The growth estimate is based on quarterly reports published by the public brewers in the category combined with a survey that the BA recently conducted. The growth rate mirrors the 7% increase the category experienced in 2004.
Ray Daniels, Director, Craft Beer Marketing for the BA announced the statistics in an industry email on Wednesday. “Given the success of 2004, this is of course great news,” Denials noted. “In general it seems like things are on a clear up swing for the industry as a whole and we will continue beating that drum with the media through the rest of this year.”
The association also reported that imports were up 8.3% (January through May) and the domestic major brand segment was down 2.6% (January through March).
