Small & Independent Brewers Target AB InBev in Move to Take Back Craft

10/25/2017
craft beer

BOULDER, Colo. — The Brewers Association is making a move to "Take Craft Back from Big Beer" with a new campaign that seeks to crowdsource the funds to buy Anheuser-Busch InBev (A-B), the international conglomerate that has acquired small breweries across the country in recent years.

The not-for-profit organization, which represents America's small and independent brewers, is pushing back against the trend of A-B and other major beer companies moving into the craft space by acquiring small breweries at a rapid rate. It launched the #TakeCraftBack campaign in early October. It features not-yet-a-superstar Andy, an avowed lover of craft beer who believes his affinity for it makes him highly qualified to serve as a campaign spokesperson.

"Since 2011, Anheuser-Busch InBev has quietly acquired 10 small and independent breweries, but they won't tell you that on their packaging," said Andy. "Just try to name all 10 without Googling…exactly. Big Beer creates an 'illusion of choice,' but we are presenting them with a reality check — and hopefully, at the end of the day, with a real check too.

"Independent craft brewers refuse to be muscled out by Big Beer," Andy continued, "And we are uniting on an unprecedented scale to take on Big Beer and their efforts to make it harder for beer drinkers to find their favorite independent craft beers at their favorite bars, liquor stores and restaurants."


Beer lovers are encouraged to spread the word with the hashtags #TakeCraftBack and #IndependentBeer.

Worth $213 billion, A-B represents the biggest and most powerful of Big Beer, so Take Back Craft intends to make it an offer it can't refuse.

More information on the campaign and how to contribute is available at www.TakeCraftBack.com, which assures visitors that pledges will only be collected once the full $213 billion has been secured. Until then, "free swag" will be distributed to contributors.

The Brewers Association is based in Boulder. It represents more than 4,000 U.S. breweries.

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