Craft Beer battle in Florida- IN-Bev taking over the world

quote:

---

The guild that represents Florida brewers says at least 12 small breweries have had merchandise reduced or completely taken off the shelves in some Publix stores across the state.

---

quote:

---

They’re blatantly removing Florida craft ones and replacing them with beers purchased by these big guys," said Joshua Aubuchon, an attorney and lobbyist with the Florida Brewers Guild.

Staples like Cigar City, Tampa Bay Brewing and Coppertail are among the remaining beers in area stores, while breweries such as Gainesville’s Swamp Head and Bradenton’s Motorworks have had their stock cut completely, according to display maps obtained by the Tampa Bay Times. St. Petersburg’s 3 Daughters’ set space has been halved from two beer options to one.

Publix, the dominant Florida-based grocery chain, overall shrank its craft beer section in half to 8 feet, freeing up more space for domestic beers such as Budweiser and Bud Light and imports such as Corona, area displays show.

---

quote:

---

The Brewers Association, which reps small brewers across the country, said its members started complaining during spring shelving resets. Small brewers told the group its craft products were being pulled from grocery chains and replaced by the once-independent craft brands that massive beer companies bought out.

---

quote:

---

The craft beer cold display in the Publix on First Avenue S in downtown St. Petersburg had "our apologies" tags in place of some brews — like the 3 Daughters’ Bimini Twist that likely won’t be restocked. Its Blonde Ale, however, is included in the latest set plan. The store at 4th Street Station had a couple of the remaining Swamp Head’s Big Nose on its clearance rack.

At the Tampa Publix on W Neptune on Dale Mabry, shelves were nearly cleared out of Goose Island’s IPA. It was on "BOGO" offer. A few weeks before, Karbach, another A-B InBev brand, had the same deal.

---

quote:

---

"As the large-multinational brewers have begun acquiring brands and pushing them more widely in distribution, we have certainly seen a trend nationwide of acquired (now corporate) brands displacing independent brands," said Bart Watson, the chief economist for the Brewers Association, which has more than 10,000 members.

Watson said it’s not unusual for A-B, or other big beer companies, to make a map for stores and distributors — they do it as part of the role of "category captain." He said the companies are supposed to act as neutral third parties when giving advice to stores.

---