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Craft Brewers Tap New Board President

 

Ohio Craft Brewers Tap New Board Members

Alan Szuter of Wolf’s Ridge Brewing elected to first term as president.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The member breweries of the Ohio Craft Brewers Association elected six representatives to the eleven-member board of directors. Alan Szuter of Wolf’s Ridge Brewing in Columbus was chosen by the association’s members to succeed Seventh Son Brewing’s Collin Castore as board president. Szuter was appointed to the board in 2018 and subsequently elected to a full two-year term the following summer.

"Like a lot of Ohio craft breweries, we joined the Ohio Craft Brewers Association very soon after we opened,” Szuter remarked. “At every stage of our growth and development, the OCBA has been instrumental in supporting us, from helping us get exposure to customers, navigate regulatory questions, find local suppliers, provide educational opportunities for our team, and in myriad other ways. I look forward to continuing growing and evolving the OCBA to meet the needs of the incredible Ohio craft brewing industry.”

Szuter will become the Ohio Craft Brewers Association’s fifth president since its founding in 2007, following Castore, Chris Alltmont of Fat Head’s Brewery, Eric Bean of Columbus Brewing Company and John Najeway of Thirsty Dog Brewing. Castore is term-limited after serving on the board for six years, the last four as president.

“We have proven that when we unite – through effective advocacy, through effective fundraising, through effective messaging – when we listen to each other and when we speak with a unified voice, we can change things,” Castore said in remarks to Ohio Craft Brewers Association members earlier this month. “Both our new and returning board members are creative, intelligent, compassionate and thoughtful. I am 100% confident that their new ideas and fresh thoughts will continue Ohio craft beer’s progress in years to come.”

Upon assuming the president’s seat on the board, Szuter will take over Castore’s duties as a public advocate for the Ohio craft brewing industry, in addition to leading the board’s work behind the scenes.

“I'd also like to thank Collin Castore for his years of selfless service,” Szuter said. “Collin's thoughtful and considered approach has set an example, and I've come to view him as an inspiration and a true friend. We wish him good luck and continued success."
 
Down the ballot, Garrett Hickey of Streetside Brewery was re-elected for his second full term and will again serve as board secretary. Fifty West Brewing Company’s Bobby Slattery was re-elected to his current at-large seat, his second term on the board of directors.

Three new board members were elected for the first time and will be seated on the board in August: Melissa Dallas of Upside Brewing in Sylvania, Carmone Macfarlane of The Phoenix Brewing Company in Mansfield and Chris Shields of Rhinegeist in Cincinnati.

Each of the six elected members of the board of directors will serve a two-year term expiring in August 2023.
 
Founded in 2007, the Ohio Craft Brewers Association is a nonprofit guild that exists to promote, preserve, diversify and unify Ohio’s craft brewing industry. We aspire to be recognized as the industry leader at both state and national levels for preserving the art of making high-quality, unique craft beer; to serve as the unified voice for craft brewers across the state; to advocate on behalf of the Ohio craft beer industry; to contribute to systemic, local community development by driving economic and job growth, while creating experiences that bring people together; to promote safe, responsible enjoyment of Ohio craft beer; and to serve as a beacon for local production and manufacturing through craft beer, resulting in diverse choices for consumers. 

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Ohio Ranks Fifth in Craft Beer Production

 

Ohio Craft Breweries Generate $880 Million in Economic Impact

Decline from 2018 due to pandemic, but underlying data gives cause for optimism.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The COVID-19 pandemic derailed years of steady growth in Ohio’s craft brewing industry, according to the Ohio Craft Brewers Association’s biennial economic impact study. The state’s independent craft breweries were responsible for a total economic impact of $880.7 million in 2020, a decline from the $967.1 million generated in 2018. The study, commissioned by the association and conducted by Silverlode Consulting, reports an 8.9% decrease in economic impact and an 11% decline in craft beer production volume attributable to the pandemic, but an increase in the number of operating breweries and the number of people directly employed by them.

Ohio’s craft beer industry was on a significant upswing through the end of 2019, with an economic impact estimated at nearly $1 billion and growing. However, the COVID-19 pandemic dealt a difficult blow to small breweries, many of which rely on by-the-glass taproom sales to drive their bottom lines. Decreased customer traffic, coupled with a shift to less profitable carry out and delivery sales, caused craft’s dollar share of the beer market to dip 22% nationally in 2020, according to a report by the Brewers Association.

Even with the tremendous challenges brought on by the pandemic, 2020 saw 47 new craft breweries open in Ohio, bringing the year-end total to a record 357. According to the Ohio Craft Brewers Association study, the state’s breweries directly employed 6,247 people in 2020, up from 6,085 in 2018. This increase is particularly notable considering the labor shortage that hospitality and service sector businesses have been forced to contend with over the past year.

More than 70% of the breweries that participated in the survey indicated that they plan to increase beer production over the next two years. Approximately half of the survey respondents plan a facility expansion during the same time frame. Survey respondents reported more than $1.7 million in charitable donations made in 2020, up from $1.15 million in 2018, despite revenue declines caused by the pandemic.

“Craft breweries really struggled to weather the effects of the pandemic, and the fight isn’t over yet,” said OCBA executive director Mary MacDonald. “Emergency relief funds and targeted changes to laws and regulations helped many of our breweries survive, but small businesses need continued support if we’re going to see a successful recovery. The economic disruption caused by COVID was massive, unprecedented, and affected small businesses disproportionally. The craft brewing industry is unlikely to return to normal until 2022 at the earliest. However, our breweries’ plans to increase production and expand their facilities give us some hope in the near term.”

The full economic impact study report is available at ohiocraftbeer.org.

Founded in 2007, the Ohio Craft Brewers Association is a nonprofit guild that exists to promote, preserve, diversify and unify Ohio’s craft brewing industry. We aspire to be recognized as the industry leader at both state and national levels for preserving the art of making high-quality, unique craft beer; to serve as the unified voice for craft brewers across the state; to advocate on behalf of the Ohio craft beer industry; to contribute to systemic, local community development by driving economic and job growth, while creating experiences that bring people together; to promote safe, responsible enjoyment of Ohio craft beer; and to serve as a beacon for local production and manufacturing through craft beer, resulting in diverse choices for consumers. 

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