AUS: Craft brewers set sights on 5% market share - report

Australia's craft brewers have committed to work together to grab a bigger share of the country's drinkers, according to local reports. 

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Craft beers take up 2% of Australia's beer market, but the Craft Brewers Industry Association, which held its inaugural meeting in Melbourne on Wednesday (16 May), said a joint effort can raise that to 5% in the next five years. “Growing the pie is what it's about,” association founding member Jamie Cook told TheShout.com.au.

He said: “Not trying to argue who's got the biggest slice or the smallest slice of the pie, but actually focusing on growing the pie in total - that's going to benefit everybody."

The association wants its brewers to catch up with their counterparts in the US, where craft beer has a 6.5% share of the market.

"[The 5% target is] relatively aggressive, but based on the growth we've seen in the US, it's achievable," Cook said, adding that Australia's craft beer market is growing at nearly 30% year-on-year.

Last week, the Australian government introduced AUS10m (US$9.86) in tax breaks for the country's microbrewers.

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