December 2017
Industry on tap: breweries
Erin Delaney and Matt Haines
Breweries, breweries everywhere, and so much beer to drink! It seems as though nearly every town in America has a brewery these days, suggesting that the industry must be expanding rapidly. But, is it? From 2006 to 2016, breweries accounted for more than half of the employment growth within the beverage manufacturing industry. As breweries—establishments engaged primarily in brewing beer, ale, lager, malt liquors, and nonalcoholic beer—are beginning to take up a larger share of the beverage manufacturing industry, soft drink and ice manufacturing's share has been declining. This Spotlight on Statistics examines historical employment trends for breweries and the other component industries that make up the beverage manufacturing industry. It also looks at wages, the number of establishments, prices, and injury rates for the brewing industry and compares them with similar measures for distilleries, wineries, and the soft drink and ice manufacturing industry.