Faust Distributing Company donates $50,000 to Houston Food Bank
Faust Distributing Company, a local beer distributor, provided their hometown Houston Food Bank with a $50,000 donation. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, demand at the Houston Food Bank is up 150% from two months ago. The contribution from the Faust family will produce 150,000 meals for Houston and the surrounding areas in need.
Sales for drinking at home soar but do not offset bar closures
Americans have spent more on alcohol in stores since the start of March than last year, but the increase in sales does not compensate for a collapse in business from restaurants and bars. One of the challenges is making beer typically destined for bars and restaurants available for at-home consumers. Lester Jones, chief economist of the National Beer Wholesalers Association, said, "I'm confident there will be plenty of beer, although I don't know if it's going to be in the right packages and the right formats that people expect." He added, "Given that we all planned months ago to have a very different market, we have to quickly adjust to the new reality."
Beer Business Daily spoke with Craig Purser, president and CEO of the National Beer Wholesalers Association, about how beer distributors have adapted during this crisis, kegs stuck in place and more. Watch the full interview here.
France is facing a similar situation to the United States where they have to figure out what to do with expiring beer. The Union for French Breweries (Brasseurs de France) announced that 10 million litres of beer, equal to 2.6 million gallons, sitting in barrels would have to be destroyed.
