Photo © Brewers Association

Presented by the Brewers Association, the Craft Brewers Conference (CBC) is the world’s largest beer and brewing industry event. Held annually, it attracts thousands of brewing professionals and some of the biggest names in the biz.

The CBC is held in different cities annually, but this year’s gathering (May 7-10) is returning to Nashville for four days of enlightening industry talk and SERIOUS fun.

But with many small breweries still reeling from the lingering economic impact of the pandemic and inflation, travelling to this year’s gathering might seem unaffordable, but the Brewers Association (BA) might be able to help you with that.

On Oct 27, the BA announced the launch of the Craft Brewers Conference Travel Grants Program, which will award 25 recipients up to $1,500 in support for eligible travel expenses. Things have gotten considerably more expensive and to help alleviate that burden the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee (DEI) has been incubating the idea for the program for more than two years.

“We have seen firsthand the professional development benefits that come from the emerging leaders on our staff attending and presenting at CBC,” said Heather Sanborn, member of the DEI Committee and co-owner of Rising Tide Brewing Company in Portland, Maine. “As a small brewery in one corner of the country, the cost of sending employees to CBC can be prohibitive. A program like this could help breweries like ours lower that barrier.”

The CBC Travel Grants program will support the goals to bring new voices to the conference speaker lineup and to enable more individuals who are not brewery owners or leaders in production roles to attend CBC.

To be eligible to apply for a CBC Travel Grant, applicants must be employed by a Brewers Association member brewery-in-planning or brewery who produces less than 15,000 bbls. Examples of eligible brewery types are:

• Contract Brand/Alternating Proprietorship
• Microbrewery
• Taproom
• Brewpub

Because of the limited availability of grants, preference will be given to eligible applicants who have had a seminar proposal accepted for the Craft Brewers Conference, first-time attendees, and those who have experienced cultural or situational barriers to attending the conference.

“Many individuals employed by breweries who are members of the Brewers Association don’t realize that as employees they are part of that membership and can directly access BA resources. They simply need to be added to their brewery’s roster,” says Sarah Billiu, BA Membership Manager. “Those who are interested should contact their brewery’s membership administrator to be added or they can simply reach out to the BA Membership Department. We’re here to help.”

Applications will be accepted through December 16, and recipients will be notified in January. The conference will take place in Nashville on 7-10, 2023.

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All Image credits: Brewers Association