Local Craft Brewers Reacts to Trump's Aluminum and Steel Tariffs

This week's cover story covers local fruterias, restaurants and markets as they grapple with a future affected by President Donald Trump’s tariffs on imports from Mexico. A 25% tax levied (then rescinded, in part) on all imports from Mexico and Canada seems to only be the beginning.

Yesterday, Trump imposed a blanket 25% tariff on all aluminum and steel imports. To assess the potential local impact, we reached out to some local craft brewers, who use cans made from aluminum and kegs made from steel. 

“We feel any impact to cans or canning supply pricing almost immediately as a small batch operation with limited storage,” says On Rotation Brewery & Kitchen co-founder Jacob Sloan.

The Love Field hangout offers several of its own beverages as well as options from other local breweries, including Tupps and Peticolas.

“We have to source 16-ounce cans by the half pallet and buy as needed throughout the year,” Sloan told us via email. “In previous shortages, cans, lids and labels cost us around $1.50 per 16-ounce can. That's before even filling it with beer, which obviously adds additional cost. So in order to not lose money when we can, our single 16-ounce and 4-pack prices have to absorb any increase.”

Sloan believes the potential pricing impact of tariffs depends on how long they last. If they are shortlived, suppliers might have enough fail-safes to protect against immediate damage. But if tariffs continue deep into the year, businesses will be forced to increase their prices.

Wim Bens, president and co-founder of Lakewood Brewing, is holding off on any conclusions.

“We are in a wait-and-see pattern on what tariffs will do to our supply chain,” he says. “Obviously, we do not want to go back to pandemic-level prices and shortages on aluminum. Right now, there is still supply available but that could change in this volatile political and economic landscape, especially if there is panic buying by the big guys.”

Among the “big guys,” is Pete Coors, former chairman of Molson Coors. In 2018, he wrote an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal criticizing Trump’s initial wave of aluminum tariffs during his first term in office, citing the half a billion pounds of aluminum that the company purchased each year.

“A cold can of beer on a hot summer day is as American as it gets,” Coors wrote in the piece. “But now that experience will cost you more, one of many unfortunate effects of the 10% tariff President Trump imposed on aluminum imports in March.”

Trump’s 2018 tariffs were removed in 2019, but there’s no indication of a timeline in 2025.

“I think there will probably be a small increase later this year or next year,” Bens says. “Craft generally bases prices on what AB or Miller does, so if they go up, craft beer generally moves in lockstep with that.”

We also spoke with Cory Hodson, owner of Intrinsic Smokehouse & Brewery in downtown Garland. Intrinsic imports aluminum and steel and sources grain from Canada.

“Basically everything we need to make beer we’re expecting to go up,” Hodson says.

The company’s knee-jerk reaction was to double up on orders before prices changed, but that will only do so much.

“We’re not going to be buying aluminum directly,” Hodson says. “We don’t have the capability of making the can, so we’re just gonna look around and get the best deal we can. What else can we do about it?

“Much like COVID, we’ll just have to pivot and adjust. We’re not happy about it, but we have to stay competitive," Hodson says. "We’re gonna do our best, and if we have to pass on the cost to customers, that’s just business."