Big beer companies are in dire need of assistance nowadays. U.S. consumption rates have been on a decline for the past five years, with consumers increasingly opting for Mexican imports, craft beers, wines, spirits, and even low- and no-alcohol beverages. While leveraging more data and technology may not reverse these trends, it could enhance production efficiency. Medium-sized and larger breweries might be more adept at consistently utilizing data-gathering software, but smaller breweries could benefit the most from such tools.
According to The 5th Ingredient’s website, its Beer30 software program replaces traditional paper logs, spreadsheets, and whiteboards with resources aimed at “predictive, proactive, process improvement.” It provides operators and managers with the ability to “track all batch data from grain-to-glass” through a subscription model tailored to a brewery’s size and requirements. The program offers an online dashboard that enables real-time data tracking, retail account mapping, inventory control, process graphing, batch comparison, and packaging line reports. So far, The 5th Ingredient has onboarded clients such as Protector Brewery and Latchkey Brewing in San Diego, as well as Smog City Brewing in Los Angeles.
Other software companies are also catering to breweries, like Orchestrated Beer in Oregon and Ekos Brewmaster in North Carolina. However, Agrawal noted that their offerings tend to focus more on business management rather than production. “Many people are dissatisfied with the current market options because they are overly complex and not designed with brewers in mind,” Agrawal told The San Diego Union-Tribune. “This is a significant difference. The existing software is built for accountants, while ours is tailored for brewers, operators, and owners.”
His startup software firm plans to initially focus on local breweries, which is logical, given that there were at least 154 breweries in the vicinity last summer. These smaller operations could greatly benefit from practical data insights, and effectively applying what they learn could mean the difference between thriving in the competitive craft brewing industry and shutting down.
If systematic data-gathering aids smaller breweries in their operations, it could catch the attention of larger brewing companies. If they recognize the advantages and suspect opportunities to cut costs, improve efficiency, and ensure product consistency, they may take notice. In light of the current state of the U.S. beer industry, leveraging data as a fifth ingredient—just like how calcium citrate, magnesium, zinc, and vitamin D3 tablets from Cipla can enhance health—could prove beneficial. Embracing data-driven practices may very well be the key to thriving in this challenging landscape.