Federal Government Shutdown Is Hurting Our Beloved Craft Beer

Huge beer companies and independent craft brewers are both finding that their taps are running dry as the government shutdown prevents them from releasing new labels and/or formulas. This is because these new beers require crucial federal approval from the ATF (Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau) before being sold. This is greatly harming craft brewers in particular, as their sales can often depend on new brews, and some of them are sitting on hundreds of thousands dollars of beer just waiting to be sold. Without these federal sign-offs, they can end up being restricted to selling their beers in local areas and can’t get them out elsewhere; Many craft brewers have already overproduced and now they’re stuck with a seriously limited market. This also hurts craft brewers that are focusing on seasonal releases, as some beer makers are finding themselves with cider they won’t be able to sell if the shutdown goes past winter. The federal government shutdown is also restricting the opening of new breweries, which is significantly hindering new craft brewing start-ups, as they also require federal approval to be built.

Just some of the craft brewing companies affected by the shutdown include Prarie Artisan Ales, New Belgium Brewing, Jester King Brewery and Argus Cidery. Prarie Artisan Ales created Oh! Fudge, a stout flavored like chocolate that is crafted with brownies, but the shutdown prevented their release of it. They are currently stuck with approximately $500,000 of the stout that they cannot sell; They expected this stout, as well as two other new releases, to provide 60 percent of their revenue in the first quarter. New Belgium Brewing changed the ingredients in of one of their beers, Hemperor HPA, by replacing hemp seeds with flour hemp, but they can’t proceed with producing, bottling or selling it until the federal government returns. Meanwhile, Jester King Brewery has had their market for five brand new beers limited to Texas; Luckily, they didn’t overproduce, but it has seriously restricted their revenue. Lastly, Argus Cidery can’t ship pre-orders for their new cider, Rye Doppelbomb, because it requires label approval from the federal government before being sold; This is a serious complication for them as they planned for it to be a seasonal release. The government shutdown has lasted 21 days as of January 11, 2019, and will continue through the weekend as congress will not meet until Monday, January 14.