Buckle Up – There’s a Beer Shortage on the Horizon!

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With more people enjoying cans of beer and soda at home rather than venturing out to a restaurant or bar, beverage companies warn a shortage could be on the horizon.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, a shortage of aluminum cans is to blame.
“Aluminum cans are in very tight supply with so many people buying more multi-pack products to consume at home,” Coca-Cola spokesperson Ann Moore said Wednesday in an email to USA Today.
“Much like manufacturers weren’t prepared for a sudden rush of Americans buying toilet paper in the early days of the pandemic, canmakers and beverage companies weren’t ready for drink consumption to go from the tap to the home,” USA Today reports.
To combat the looming shortage, can manufacturers are scrambling to build at least three new factories within the next 18 months, but, as USA Today reports, that won’t solve current supply issues.
“The aluminum beverage can manufacturing industry has seen unprecedented demand for this environmentally friendly container prior to and especially during the COVID-19 pandemic,” the Aluminum Association, an industry group representing the metal’s manufacturers, said in a statement reported by USA Today. “Many new beverages are coming to market in cans, and other long-standing can customers are moving away from plastic bottles due to ongoing environmental concerns around plastic pollution. Consumers also appear to be favoring the portability and storability of cans as they spend more time at home.”