America’s Brewers Association has released its 2022 Annual Craft Brewing Industry Production Report which shows the country’s small and independent brewers’ share of the overall beer market grew to 13.2%, up from 13.1% the previous year.
The trade association’s report also stated that the small and independent brewers it represents collectively produced 24.3 million barrels of beer which was on par with 2021’s numbers.
The Brewers Association’s chief economist Bart Wilson said: “2022 presented small brewers with a number of challenges, including rising operating and material costs and increasing competition, particularly in distribution. In this maturing and competitive market, collective growth for the category is hard to come by”.
The report shows America’s overall beer market shrank 3% by volume in 2022 while retail dollar value was estimated at US$ 28.46 billion, representing a 24.6% market share and 6% growth over 2021. Sales growth was stronger than volume due to pricing, share shift to smaller brewers – who are more likely to sell onsite and via distributed draught – as well as the continued channel shift back to on-premise, which has a higher average retail value.
Craft brewers provided 189,413 direct jobs, a 9% increase from 2021, driven both by growth in the number of breweries and a continued shift to hospitality-focused business models.
The number of operating craft breweries continued to climb in 2022, reaching an all-time high of 9,552, including 2,035 microbreweries, 3,418 brewpubs, 3,838 taproom breweries, and 261 regional craft breweries. The total US operating brewery count was 9,709, up from 9,384 in 2021.
Throughout the year, there were 549 new brewery openings and 319 closings. Openings decreased for a second consecutive year, with the continued decline reflecting a more mature market. The closing rate increased in 2022 but continued to remain relatively low, at approximately 3%.
“The relatively low closure rate reflects both the solid demand for fuller flavoured local beer as well as the versatility and flexibility of small brewers,” added Watson.
In addition, the Brewers Association released its annual list of the top 50 producing craft brewing companies and overall brewing companies in the US, based on beer sales volume. Of the top 50 overall brewing companies in 2022, 40 were small and independent craft brewing companies.
“Breweries that managed to move up the list organically are often those that are adding incremental growth to the category,” said Watson. “Both beer and craft need to create new occasions and new beer lovers to find growth.”
View and download list of top 50 producing craft brewing companies here.