Craft Brew News #75 – Oktoberfest 2020 CANCELLED But Breweries Starting to Bring Employees Back

Craft Brew News
4/24/20

Germany Cancels 2020 Oktoberfest

German officials today cancelled the country’s famed Oktoberfest celebration due to concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bavarian Minister President Markus Söder said during a press conference. “It hurts. It’s such a pity,” “We have agreed that the risk is simply too high.”

The festival, originally slated for September 19 through October 4, usually draws 6 million people to Munich. Chancellor Angela Merkel announced that all large events be cancelled through August 31; however, officials said Oktoberfest, or the Wiesn in local parlance, is too large of an undertaking to adjust or postpone.

Event manager Clemens Baumgärtner said. “The Wiesn is a total work of art that you either do completely or not at all, and this work of art cannot be moved backwards or made in a smaller form,”

Oktoberfest, which dates back to 1810, generates more than 1 billion euros for the city of Munich and draws 2 million travelers to the city from other countries, according to Reuters.

Molson Coors Extends HEXO CBD Beverage Partnership to US

Molson Coors Beverage Company is deepening its relationship with Quebec-based cannabis company HEXO, today announcing the launch of a new joint venture to produce non-alcoholic CBD-infused beverages in Colorado.

The new venture, Truss CBD USA, will be majority owned by Molson Coors and operate as an independent company with its own board of directors, management and resources. All products will be produced in Colorado and distributed exclusively for sale within the state.

Molson Coors isn’t the only major beer company exploring the potential for cannabis beverages in Canada, which approved legal sales in December 2019. Anheuser-Busch InBev and Toronto-based cannabis brand Tilray launched a joint venture to research both THC- and CBD-infused beverages in December 2018, with each side committing $50 million to the project. Constellation Brands, the world’s largest spirits company, also has a minority ownership in Canopy Growth Corp.

According to cannabis market research firm Brightfield Group, the U.S. CBD beverage market was worth $143.1 million in 2019. Colorado ranks 10th in the country in terms of CBD beverage consumers by state, with that group representing 2.9% of U.S. users.

Minnesota Allows Restaurants to Sell Beer and Wine To Go

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz signed legislation last week that permits the sale of beer and wine to-go from restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Associated Press.

Walz said. “This is a small but important step to provide relief for the local restaurants that are struggling to keep their lights on during this pandemic.

Restaurants and bars are now allowed to sell a bottle of wine or six-pack of beer with food orders.

Atlanta-Based Monday Night Brewing Begins Rehiring Furloughed Staff

Atlanta’s Monday Night Brewing shared last week that it had begun rehiring some of its furloughed employees.

The company wrote on Instagram.
“Because of your willingness to purchase directly from our small brewery and generous contributions, we will actually be able to bring some of our furloughed staff back onto payroll

Four furloughed employees were brought back and other employees whose hours were cut have received additional work. Monday Night will continue donating 25% of to-go sales and 100% of donations to its staff fund.

The company wrote. “Your willingness to step up to the plate for the survival of our brewery and our team has been an incredibly life-giving and humbling experience for us,”

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