Vol 5, No 17  Apr 22, 2024

“No Target” for Now in US M&A, Asahi Aims to Build Low & No Alc Bevs Here and Globally, Sez Ceo EXPRESS – Apr 15 “We’ve always said we want to do M&A,” ceo Atsushi Katsuki told Financial Times recently, but “there is currently no target for us.” The co still believes the US is “the best and biggest market for us, and it’s also the missing piece for us.” But that piece isn’t on the table right now. That puts a finer point to comments from late Feb, when Atsushi told Bloomberg that the “best scenario” would be to buy a “relatively large beer company” in North America. It hadn’t yet found a target and now sez there isn’t one in the short term. For now, Asahi plans to “expand its lineup of alcohol free beverages in the US…through investments in start-ups,” wrote FT.

Now It’s Messi Rival Neymar Entering Bevs, via Cocktail, Mocktail Lines Harnessing Brazilian Flavors BEV INSIGHTS – Apr 15 The Argentine soccer icon Leo Messi may be collaborating with Mark Anthony Brands on a new sports drink, but his Brazilian rival and former Barcelona teammate Neymar ain’t standin’ still. He’s teamed up with Fun Brands incubator to launch a line of naturally formulated cocktails and mocktails that will break later this year in Brazil. As with Messi announcement a few weeks ago, the announcement is mainly a teaser, with few details on offer: on alc side, the entries will use spirit and wine bases, and all will highlight “the flavors of Brazil.” The mocktails ain’t no afterthought: “The idea of also offering non-alcoholic beverages greatly attracted me to the venture,” per canned quote from soccer star, whose real name is Neymar da Silva Santos Junior.

Topical Panel at NBWA Spring Leg; Active Antis, “Storm Brewing”; “Challenges” for Craft, Oppys for Low and No EXPRESS – Apr 16 Moderating a panel of association leaders, NBWA prexy Craig Purser talked about “a storm brewing” regarding alcohol and health in US, involving a “great deal of scrutiny,” “a great deal of criticism,” and “a lot of misinformation.” Yet these trends are more advanced globally. “We see these trends all around the world,” said World Brewing Alliance prexy Justin Kissinger (WBA represents 70% of global beer). “There is an organized group of people who are trying to undermine the social acceptability of alcohol.” A lot of it is led out of Geneva and NY. It’s international organizations like WHO and the United Nations, Justin noted. They have “strong media allies, a large amount of funding” and “it’s really about attacking the products and the consumer experience around it.” He called it: “Prohibition by a different name.”

Indie Craft Production Off Just 1% in 2023, BA Sez; Top 50 Near 1/2 of Volume; 51% Capacity Use CRAFT – Apr 16 Small and independent US craft brewers produced about 23.4 mil bbls in 2023, “another competitive and challenging year,” Brewers Assn chief economist and strategy veep Bart Watson shared Apr 16. That’s down around 1% vs 2022, apples-to-apples, and “a little bit worse than last year,” Bart commented. Org revised its 2022 craft production estimate downward from the slightly positive side of flat to the negative side. This yr’s reported trend may be “more positive” than some expected, he acknowledged. That’s driven by a “set of brewers that are maybe priced below where typical craft brewers may be,” driven by largest indie craft brewer for BA, Yuengling, plus fast-growing non-alc beer.

That’s All Folks: Tense 3-Yr Dispute Between Leading Beer Cos Over Corona Seltzer Ends EXPRESS – Apr 17 When it’s over, it’s over. And the long-running dispute between ABI’s Mexican Modelo arm and Constellation over Corona and Modelo hard seltzers is finally over. ABI’s window to request a rehearing before a larger panel of 2nd Circuit judges (“en banc”) closed on the 8th. With no request, the appellate ct’s mandate issued on Apr 15. So 3 yrs and 2 mos to the day after ABI filed suit in a NY fed district ct, decisions by Judge Lewis A Kaplan were formally affirmed and the jury’s verdict for STZ stands.

After Successful Pivot from Shots to Cans, Tru Preps $15M Series B Round, Revamps Graphics; BAT, Polar Among Current Investors BEV INSIGHTS – Apr 17 In its ninth year now, Boston-based Tru functional brand is laying groundwork for Series B capital round as it revamps its packs and aims finally to build out western half of US from the Houston base to which founder Jack McNamara has relocated. New look for 12-oz sleek cans of Tru Sparkling Enhanced Beverages dials up Tru brand name from modest identifier to focal point of front panel, offering greater unity to product lineup that variously emphasized functions like Power, Energy, Defend and Beauty. The new look also does more to emphasize the hero ingredients in each sku, key certifications like gluten-free and heart-healthy, and the modest 10-calorie count.

Voodoo, Athletic Over 1/2 of High-ABV, NA Craft and Gaining; Big Brand Fams Growing in NA CRAFT – Apr 17 Mid-strength craft brands may still dominate the segment, but they’re losing ground quickly to high-ABV and non-alcoholic entries, 1st qtr review of NIQ off-premise data by Bump Williams Consulting illustrates. Over 63 share of craft $$ remains in the 4-7% ABV range, BWC deck shows. But that majority of the segment shed 2.7 share on a mid-single-digit decline YTD thru Mar 30. In high-ABV, 9% is the sweet spot. Craft brands between 9% and 9.9% ABV grew 25% in Q1, grabbed another 2.5 share of segment $$ to 12.1. All stronger craft brands collectively down a little bit, but holding at about 1.4 share.

“36% of Marijuana Users Report Reduced Alcohol Consumption Since Using Cannabis,” Sez Numerator EXPRESS – Apr 18 New Numerator survey of 6,000 individuals shows “more than 1 in 3 THC users (36%) say they have reduced their alcohol consumption since they began using cannabis products.”  However, those cannabis users “are still more likely than non-users to buy alcohol (73% vs 65%).” Interestingly, those who consume the most THC spend a bigger % of their grocery budget on alcohol than those who don’t consume cannabis. “Daily THC users spend 15% of their grocery dollars on alcohol” while infrequent users spend 18.1% and non-users spend 14.3%, according to Numerator. Just 19% of CBD users said they used to drink more before.

Brief Heart Health Paper Supports Existing US Drinking Guidelines, Despite Headlines ALCOHOL ISSUES – Apr 18 A study of hundreds of thousands of US adults confirmed that moderate alcohol consumption, in line with current federal guidelines, did not significantly increase the risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) compared to light drinkers. But coverage of the study might have misled you into believing otherwise. “Alcohol raises heart disease risk, particularly among women,” headlined a release from the American College of Cardiology, which presented the brief paper at a conference early this month. It elicited headlines like “More than one alcoholic drink a day raises heart disease risk for women,” from the Washington Post, and “New study shows a link between alcohol and heart disease in women,” by NBC News. Cut to the chase: men and women who drank within the current US guidelines (up to 2 drinks per day for men, 1 per day for women) showed negligible changes in CVD risk compared to adults consuming just 1-2 drinks per week. For men, there was a 1% lower risk, for women a 3% higher risk. Statistically speaking, neither were significant and confidence intervals suggest anywhere from slightly less to slightly more risk in both groups.

REMINDER: Discounted Hotel Rates for Spring Conference Available Thru Apr 24 Just a few days remain to book discounted hotel room rates for the upcoming Beer Insights Spring Conference May 15-16 at the Four Seasons Chicago! Book your stay at the Four Seasons or the Westin (just 500 ft away) by April 24th to take advantage of these exclusive prices. You won’t want to miss this exceptional event featuring first-rate speakers from around the industry.

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