For small brewers, purchasing your own canning solution is a big decision. Buying your own beer canning system can be expensive, take up precious space in your facility and requires maintenance and operation staff that you might not have.
However, there comes a time when every brewer needs to take their canning needs into their own hands. Here are some reasons to consider purchasing your own beer canning system.
1. You’re Using a Mobile Canner Too Often
Most small brewers employ the services of mobile canners that drive up with their equipment, process a batch of cans, and leave again. There are pros and cons to this approach. The advantage is that you don’t have to purchase your own equipment, maintain it, or find anywhere to put it.
The downside is cost. Most mobile canners charge between $3.00 and $4.80 per case for their services, which can add up quickly as your volume increases. For example, imagine a brewery producing 3,000 barrels per year. 3,000 barrels is equivalent to roughly 41,000 cases per year, and 41,000 cases will cost anywhere from $120,000 to nearly $200,000 per year to process through a mobile brewer.
By contrast, how much does a canning machine cost? 41,000 cases per year is the equivalent of 82,000 cans per month. If you run your equipment 12 hours per day, you’ll only need to process between three and four cans per minute. Even Twin Monkeys’ smallest machine, the Mancos, can process between 5 and 15 cans per minute in a footprint less than three by four feet. If you can run the Mancos for just over 1,000 hours a year, you’ll pay far less than what you’re currently paying for mobile canners.
2. Growing Your Business
When you first start out, your business might be limited to taproom services. As you grow, your customers will want to be able to take your products with them, and growlers will only go so far. Glass containers can’t be taken to parks, camping, or all the other places that your Colorado customers want to drink their beer, coffee, kombucha, and craft sodas. If you want to expand your business beyond your taproom and the word of mouth that brings people through the door, you’ll need to start distribution.
In addition to portability, canning is marketing! Every time your logo is spotted on a liquor store shelf or in someone’s hand, you’re spreading awareness about your company and your product. If your brewery seems to hit a plateau in terms of revenue, a canning line is a far more efficient way of expanding your audience than expanding into another physical location or adding SKUs to your taproom selection.
3. Diversifying your Revenue Stream
2020 was a rude awakening for businesses across the foodservice industry, as people were forced to stay inside and stopped frequenting restaurants, taprooms, brewpubs, and restaurants.By contrast, beer sales as a whole rose significantly in 2020. According to NPR, beer sales rose 27 percent over the previous year, including a 23 percent increase in craft beer sales — customers didn’t stop drinking beer, they simply stopped buying beer at restaurants and started purchasing it from grocery and liquor stores instead.
Adding canning capabilities to your brewery will diversify your revenue, allowing you to make money from people who are too far away or otherwise unable to visit your taproom in person. When things are going well, distribution is a welcome addition to your revenue. In uncertain economic times, it might be the safety net that keeps you afloat.
Talk to Twin Monkeys Today
If your brewery is ready to expand its capabilities into distribution, now is the time to talk to Twin Monkeys about our uniquely modular canning systems. With Twin Monkeys machines ranging from the ultra-compact Mancos to the customizable Cimarron system, you can expand the reach and capabilities of your brewery without renting an enormous warehouse or spreading yourself too thin. Get in touch with Twin Monkeys today and we’ll build the canning solution that’s right for you.