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Prost! Salud! 乾杯! في صحتكم! Cheers! Today is International Beer Day, a day to celebrate the incredible story of beer across the world. Beer has a proud and diverse history across different cultures, regions, and eras, and this diversity continues to impact how beer is enjoyed and understood across the globe today. Beer has charted…

Brian CrawfordPresident and CEO, Beer Institute This article originally appeared on RealClearPolitics on July 1, 2023. Think of your favorite beer. What comes to mind? Maybe it’s an IPA at your friend’s cookout, or a crisp and refreshing light lager at a baseball game, or a summer shandy at the beach. No matter what brew…

Brian CrawfordPresident and CEO, Beer Institute This article originally appeared on Bloomberg Tax on March 6, 2023. One significant policy issue left out of President Joe Biden’s agenda for the next two years is the repeal of the aluminum tariffs in Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act. Unfortunately for US consumers and manufacturers—and particularly for American brewers and…

This article originally appeared on Bloomberg Tax on September 2, 2022. What image comes to mind when you think of a job in the beer industry? Maybe it’s a union worker on the bottling line of one of America’s oldest beer brands—the same brand that your grandfather drank 50 years ago. Perhaps it’s your local craft brewery offering taproom samples of their latest limited-edition microbrew.

This article originally appeared on Bloomberg Tax on September 2, 2022. What image comes to mind when you think of a job in the beer industry? Maybe it’s a union worker on the bottling line of one of America’s oldest beer brands—the same brand that your grandfather drank 50 years ago. Perhaps it’s your local craft brewery offering taproom samples of their latest limited-edition microbrew.

Last week, America’s brewers flew in to Washington, D.C. from all corners of the nation to meet with our representatives in Congress and thank them for supporting our thriving, competitive industry. “Beer advocates from all across the U.S. met with members of both parties to highlight beer’s contributions to local economies and communities,” said Beer Institute director of public affairs Alex Davidson.

Even as most other states rejected its lobbying efforts, the liquor industry recently received a massive handout that’s likely to hurt Vermont taxpayers, while boosting profits for a few big, out-of-state liquor companies. New legislation significantly reduces the tax rate on canned cocktails and directs more money into the coffers of out-of-state liquor companies. It also allows Vermont’s private beverage retailers to start selling liquor-based drinks for the first time — edging out the state’s beer products that have long supported local communities and businesses.

This month I celebrate 21 years of working for the Beer Institute. In the beer business, 21 years is a special number because it is one of the most coveted and celebrated milestones for an individual – the day you can enjoy your first alcohol beverage as a legal-aged drinking adult.

A leading beer industry publication recently ran this statement about efforts in states to pass special tax hand-outs to the liquor lobby that would hurt local beer economies: “Arguments for reducing taxes on RTD spirits are clearly not a winner in state legislatures in 2022.” Beer Marketer’s Insights looked at legislative debates in a handful of states and concluded: “distilled spirits going 0-fer so far this spring.” Pro-liquor tax carveout bills failed big this year in seven states: Alabama, Arizona, Hawaii, Kentucky, Maryland, Washington, and

Grilling on the back patio with neighbors. Spending a day at the beach with friends. Going to a summer music festival. Cheering on your favorite team at the ballpark. What pairs best with these long-standing American traditions? A cold, refreshing beer. Memorial Day marks the beginning of summer, a critical time for the beer industry.