Founders Brewing Co. ranked among the top 20 breweries in the U.S. by sales volume for 2015 on a new list that includes both craft brewers and large domestic producers.
Statistics published by the Boulder, Colo.-based Brewers Association show the Grand Rapids brewery ranked 20th — up three spots from the prior year — among all brewers, including giants Anheuser-Busch Inc. and MillerCoors, the top two producers, respectively.
This year also marked the departure for Founders from the Brewers Association’s craft brewery rankings. The association no longer considers Founders as a craft brewery as a result of its 2015 deal with Spanish brewer Mahou San Miguel Group, which purchased a 30-percent stake in the company. By definition, the Brewers Association only includes independent producers that are less than 25 percent controlled by a non-craft brewery.
Meanwhile, Galesburg-based Bell’s Brewery Inc. maintained its spot at 12th among all U.S. breweries and seventh among craft breweries, the same positions it held last year, according to the report.
Bell’s and Founders were the only two Michigan-based breweries listed by the Brewers Association in the report.
