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The good news is that a new bill is pending which will prohibit Big Beer from entering into exclusive deals with bars and stores in Alaska. Its passage will level the playing field for small craft brewers and it’s long overdue.
Here’s the deal…
Alaskan craft brewers have long been plagued by sketchy Big Beer practices which have severely limited their growth and distribution. But that changes in 2024 if Senate Bill 9 is approved.
As things stand now Big Beer heavyweights with deep pockets have held an unfair advantage because they could offer Alaskan bar owners expensive new draft beer systems for free with the one caveat that only their beers are sold on tap… essentially tying up all of the lines.
The big beer companies would also assume the expense of keeping those tap lines clean which professionals suggest should ideally take place every two weeks.
But that’s not all…
The pending bill also bans big beer companies from offering free prizes and incentives to retailers in return for product placement that limited access to smaller breweries. In the music business they call practices like this payola (money for radio airplay) in this case it’s about prime product exposure.
With its passage bars could no longer receive free draft beer systems from manufacturers and wholesalers, but they could still get them cleaned for free. Additionally, retailers would be restricted to accepting free prizes up to $400 for contests, and prohibited from signing exclusive agreements with for shelf space or presentation of products.
Lee Ellis, head of the Brewers Guild of Alaska and owner of Midnight Sun Brewing Co., told the Anchorage Daily News that some of those practices are common in Alaska. That brewers can find it difficult to get their beers featured on barroom taps, he said, or in liquor stores.
“I think it’s actually been one of the biggest inhibitors to the growth of our industry in the state,” Ellis added
Senate Bill 9 comes with new regulations that will bring Alaska into compliance with federal laws, and level things out for the state’s craft brewers. Ironically those federal laws are enforced by the state, but with this bill’s passage they will be.
The newly proposed regulations are open for public comment until the afternoon of January 26 on Alaska’s public notices webpage. Alaska’s Alcoholic Beverage Control Board will then meet and evaluate the regulations the following week.
