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U.S. craft distillers to lose $700 mln in annual sales on virus fallout

Aug 20 (Reuters) - Craft distillers in the United States are expected to lose more than $700 million in sales this year, while nearly a third of this industry's workers have been furloughed due to the coronavirus crisis, an industry trade body said on Thursday.

Craft distillers are projected to lose 41% of the industry's total sales, mainly due to a plunge in wholesale and on-site tasting room revenue, according to a study by the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS) that surveyed 300 distillers across 50 states and the District of Columbia.

The $1.8 billion industry has also been forced to furlough 4,600 employees, or almost 31% of the total workforce, as a result of widespread closures of pubs and restaurants to contain the spread of the pandemic.

The world's largest spirits maker Diageo reported earlier this month that its profit had nearly halved, blaming the sharp drop in out-of-home drinking.

There are more than 2,000 craft distilleries operating in the United States - businesses that collectively generate more than 15,000 direct jobs, DISCUS said. (Reporting by Siddharth Cavale in Bengaluru, Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)

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