Sapporo Moves U.S. Beer Production Out of Canada

Rieko Shofu, Sapporo’s chief strategy officer: “Tariffs are something out of our control.” “We’re going to move ahead with local production.” Non-alcoholic beer now made in Canada for the U.S. market will be brewed in the United States by the first half of 2027. The 50% U.S. levy on Canadian beer that took effect Aug. 22 is the proximate cause.

Sapporo Holdings owns Sleeman Breweries, Canada’s third-largest beer maker, headquartered in Guelph. The company is weighing a West Coast brewery buy, a greenfield plant, or contract brewing. The flagship brand is already the top-selling Asian beer in the U.S. Shofu: the U.S. is huge, and “we have a lot of momentum right now in terms of how much we can expand our share of that market.”

The shift sits inside a bigger rebuild. Sapporo plans ¥300 billion to ¥400 billion (about US$1.9 billion to US$2.6 billion) of beer investments and deals through 2030, targeting operating profit of ¥40 billion from about ¥24 billion last year, with roughly 30% from overseas. Stone was sold in 2022. Anchor was liquidated in 2023. Canada keeps the domestic brands. The U.S. shelf gets the volume that no longer clears a 50% border tax.

Tariffs don’t just raise the sticker. They move the kettle. Canada loses U.S.-bound non-alc volume; American plant capacity gains it. The consumer still pays somewhere in the chain. The plant pays first.