Craft beer industry gets major boost from foreign investors

Foreign beer makers are taking some big swigs of the frothy US craft beer business. Just this week, the number of breweries in this country surpassed 5,000 for the first time, up 1,000 in the past year and light years ahead of the 50 in operation in the mid-1980s, according to the Brewers Association. Fueling…

via Craft beer industry gets major boost from foreign investors — New York Post

The Buffalo Niagara region, which has been spawning a slew of new craft breweries with largely endogenous financing, could benefit from foreign investment — but in doing so, would limit the region’s upside economic benefit once these breweries achieve scale.

In a globally competitive environment, local ownership is more important an economic development prerogative than ever before. As bureaucrats and policy makers catch up, our local brewers would be doing the region a favor in retaining local ownership and partnering with local financiers, deservedly earning the loyalty of local consumers in doing so.