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Michigan is one of our favorite craft beer regions. And while its automotive industry, once the economic engine that fueled the state, still struggles, Michigan’s beer business is thriving.
Michigan produced 1,387,343 barrels of beer in 2018, that’s up 10% from 2017 and almost eight times more than the amount produced in 2007, according to Mlive… And while that number includes both big beer brands as well as small independent brewers, it’s important to note that the majority of beer in Michigan is produced by craft brewers.
According to a report by C+R Research, there are so many craft breweries in Michigan, that the state ranks in the top 10 nationwide for most breweries per capita, with 4.5 breweries for every 100,000 adults 21 years of age and older.
And here some more Michigan beer factoids, courtesy of data from the federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau and the Michigan Liquor Control Commission.
With US Beer Production Trending Down, Michigan Beer Is Trending Up
US breweries produced 166.9 million barrels of beer in 2018 compared to 188.4 million in 2007…a 12% national drop,
Michigan breweries, on the other hand, produced 1.39 million barrels of beer in 2018 compared to just short of 147,000 barrels in 2007, a more than eight-fold increase, according to the federal stats.
Founders Detroit taproom
Bell’s and Founders Dominate Brewing in Michigan
Michigan’s leading beer producers are Bell’s Brewery based in Kalamazoo and Founder’s Brewing Co., headquartered in Grand Rapids.
The oldest microbrewer in the state is Bell’s Brewery was founded by Larry Bell in 1985. And Founders Brewing which opened in 1997 and creates some of the most beloved suds in the state. Founders is now 30% owned by Mahou-San Miguel Group and no longer recognized as a craft brewer by the Brewers Association.
Almost half the Michigan-made beer sold in-state was produced by either Bell’s Brewery or Founders Brewing. Bell’s accounted for 30% of that market and Founder’s was 18%.
Microbrewery Production Rises in Michigan
Microbreweries in Michigan are classified as those that produce no more than 60,000 barrels a year. Bell’s and Founders are the only two companies that hold a brewer’s license in the state which allows then to manufacture more than 60, 00 barrels of beer a year.
In 2018, Michigan registered 296 active microbrewery licenses, up from 259 in 2017. And microbrewery beer production increased 6.5% between 2017 and 2018.
