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(Courtesy Anheuser-Busch)
In a move that speaks volumes about the current state of the beer biz, AB InBev has sold eight craft beer and drinks brands to major cannabis company, Tilray Brands.
On August 7th the global cannabis-lifestyle and consumer packaged goods company, announced that the company has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire eight beer and beverage brands from Anheuser-Busch.
Pending approval, Tilray will acquire Shock Top; Breckenridge Brewery; Blue Point Brewing Company; 10 Barrel Brewing Company; Redhook Brewery; Widmer Brothers Brewing as well as Square Mile Cider Company and HiBall Energy.
The all-cash transaction which includes current employees, breweries and brewpubs associated with these brands, is rumored to be around $85 million, according to a filing made with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
It might strike some as odd, that the largest cannabis producer in the world is investing so much capital into the craft beer biz at a time when the industry is slowing, unless you’re thinking strategically and looking towards the future.
A future where recreational cannabis is legal nationally and Tilray can start producing cannabis-infused brews…And its latest eight property acquisition only furthers that eventual goal.
This journey started when Aphria Inc., a Canadian pot-producer, purchased SweetWater Brewing in 2020.
It was a $300 million transaction involving both stock and cash, which gave Aphria, a publically traded company, entry into the US market and the infrastructure to advance its cannabis business as state laws evolved.
Two weeks after closing on the acquisition of Atlanta’s Sweetwater Brewing, Aphria reached an agreement to merge with Tilray, a Canadian pharmaceutical and cannabis company forming the world’s largest cannabis company valued at $3.8 billion.
On July 21, 2021 the now Tilray-owned SweetWater Brewing announced that it had expanded its reach to Colorado, where recreational cannabis has long been legal, with a new brewery in Fort Collins and a taproom at Denver International Airport.
Then in December SweetWater Brewing announced that it was acquiring San Diego, California-based Green Flash Brewing and Alpine Beer, both companies that have seen better days.
California is an equally pot-friendly state, but that said, the company will has moved the actual brewing of those brands to the brewery it purchased in Colorado.
Last November, Tilray Brands acquired Montauk Brewing Company in another move that the company stated would assist in expanding its reach across the US. And with this six brewery acquisition, the company is poised to become the fifth largest producer of craft beer in the nation and triple its beer production, up from 4 million cases per year to 12 million.
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