Sapporo weighs moving US non-alcoholic beer production from Canada
Sapporo is reviewing US production options for its non-alcoholic beer as tariffs and wider supply-chain changes reshape its North American manufacturing strategy.
USA – Japanese brewer Sapporo is evaluating options to produce its non-alcoholic beer for the US market domestically, as it reviews its North American supply chain amid changing business conditions.
Chief strategy officer Rieko Shofu told Bloomberg that the company planned to move production of its Sapporo 0.0% non-alcoholic beer from Canada to the US by the first half of 2027, citing 50% US tariffs on beer imports from Canada.
Sapporo 0.0% is currently brewed in Canada. Shofu said the company was considering acquiring or building a brewery on the US West Coast or using contract manufacturing.
However, Sapporo said no production transfer has been approved or finalised.
In a statement, the company said it was evaluating various options regarding the production of non-alcoholic beer for the US market based on changing business conditions.
The brewer added that the review was not a new initiative driven solely by tariffs and was instead one of several options as part of our broader, long-term discussions on supply chain optimisation.
Sapporo has already been restructuring its US production footprint. In April, the company agreed to sell its Stone Brewing assets to Firestone Walker and another US subsidiary of Duvel Moortgat.
At the time, Sapporo said its Richmond, Virginia brewery would become its “core production base” for Sapporo products and that it would “consolidate all US production” there.
Production of Sapporo and Stone brands at the Escondido, California facility is scheduled to end by the close of 2026.
Sapporo acquired Stone Brewing for $165 million in 2022, saying the transaction would help accelerate the growth of the Sapporo brand in the US market and expand our North American operations.
The company said in April that total demand across the entire US beer market trended downward, citing higher prices linked to inflation and changing consumer preferences.
At the same time, Sapporo said sales of its namesake brand “have continued to grow robustly” in the US, prompting the company to focus resources on the brand.
The potential shift in non-alcoholic beer production therefore comes alongside broader efforts to adjust Sapporo’s US manufacturing and supply-chain structure.
The company’s review could involve several production models, including investment in its own facilities or partnerships with other manufacturers, but Sapporo has not committed to a specific option.
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