U.S. Beer Industry Brews 1.75M Jobs, $253B in Economic Activity: Study

In California, the U.S. beer industry supports 106,999 jobs, according to the "Beer Serves America" study released by The Beer Institute and the National Beer Wholesalers Association

This may be worth a toast: a new study released Tuesday says the U.S. beer industry supports 1.75 million jobs in America and generates nearly $253 billion in economic activity.

The Beer Institute and the National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA) released the “Beer Serves America” report during a Congressional briefing, which details the industry’s impact on the American economy in 2014, including state-by-state data.

The study reports that in California, the U.S. beer industry supports 106,999 jobs across brewing, retail and distributing positions. Those jobs paid $4,380,579,900 in total wages in 2014. The study says the brewing, retail and distributing branches of the beer industry in California contributed more than $13.5 billion ($13,561,063,500, to be exact) in economic activity in 2014.

The study goes on to say the beer industry paid a total of $1,190,474,200 in taxes in California in 2014 and generated $5,099,120,800 in combined federal, state and local taxes in the Golden State.

California is currently home to 738 brewing establishments and 1,046 beer distributing businesses, according to the report, many in San Diego.

Nationally, the study says the beer industry produces $48.5 billion in tax revenue, which include business, personal and consumption taxes, along with taxes on sales, gross receipts and revenue collected from state and federal excise taxes on beer.

The industry’s economic output of $252.6 billion across the U.S. is equal to about 1.5 percent of the U.S. Gross Domestic Product.

The report says the total number of brewing facilities in the U.S. has grown by 2,290 in two years, most being very small brewers or brew pubs. Still, more than 70 percent of brewing jobs in America are linked to large and mid-sized brewers and beer importers. The number of distributor jobs supported by the industry has increased by more than 20 percent over the last decade, to more than 131,207 jobs, according to the study.

Meanwhile, suppliers to the brewing industry – including enterprises that manufacture bottles and cans, cardboard case boxes, brewing equipment or marketing displays – generate more than $83 billion in economic activity and are responsible for more than 383,190 jobs alone.

“The American beer industry directly and indirectly employs more than 1.75 million Americans in more than a dozen different categories – including farming and package manufacturing – whose jobs are just as dependent on a thriving beer trade as those workers directly involved in the brewing, distributing and sale of beer,” the “Beer Serves America” study states.

Read the full study on the beer industry's contribution to the U.S. economy here.

Contact Us