Breweries and the Craft of Managing Risks

精酿酿造商可以花几个小时来寻找啤酒花和麦芽的完美平衡，对新食材进行采样，并梦想着下一个独特的招牌啤酒。部分艺术，部分科学和所有热情，许多精酿啤酒厂正在发展为更大的运营，增加了瓶掌室并扩大了分销。一旦在地图上晦涩的啤酒厂，吸引了越来越多的热心消费者基地的啤酒步道。

There were more than 6,200 craft breweries operating in the U.S. in 2017, double the number from four years earlier.¹While homegrown brewers may understand what goes into making a quality brew, they may be unaware of some risks that their growing craft breweries face, according to Reese Cann, a Travelers Risk Control Liability Specialist, who works with craft brewers on identifying and managing risks, from hosting special events to handling product recalls.

“Brewers typically understand how important it is to have clean tanks and production lines, because the impact can be immediate and spoil an entire batch,” Cann said. But there are other risks to consider. Master brewers can quit a brewery with a popular beer recipe in tow if contracts are not in place to protect the brewery’s intellectual property. Lack of proper liquor liability training can lead to the brewery being sued if, for example, an overserved patron causes a car accident.

Protecting Your Brewery as it Grows

Heath Kidd, Travelers’ Food Manufacturing INDUSTRYEdge Manager, says that craft breweries need to practice diligence as they expand from a homegrown company. This includes being aware of changing food safety regulations. For example, the FDA’sFood Safety Modernization Actfocuses on preventing foodborne illnesses and brings breweries under FDA regulation for the first time.

需要食品设施制定食品安全计划，其中包括危害分析和基于风险的预防控制（HARPC），以最大程度地减少或防止已识别的危害。²除这些风险外，精酿啤酒厂还面临更常见的业务风险，包括房屋责任，火，盗窃和设备故障。

Here are seven ways to help protect your craft brewery from risk:

1. 保护您的供应链。您所有的季节性啤酒啤酒花都来自一个供应商吗？这可能会使您容易受到供应链问题的攻击。确保按照所需的数量有稳定且可用的成分供应。与啤酒花蓬勃发展的特定地理区域的种植者合同可能具有竞争力。有一个备用供应计划，以防及时收到货物的问题。
2. 计划您对产品召回的回应。Suppose there’s a problem with a label, and an allergen, such as wheat, is not mentioned, or a foreign material is discovered in one of your bottles. Have a plan for everything, from how you will notify customers and get products off the shelf to how you’ll engage a lawyer and address consumer concerns on social media.
3. 确保就业合同保护您的IP。Contracts should ensure that if a master brewer leaves the brewery, all recipes remain the property of the brewery and can’t be replicated at a competing brewery.
4. 培训工作人员的酒责任。如果您要在财产上品尝品尝，请确保对员工进行适当的培训，可以为顾客提供酒精。将志愿者分配给其他任务，而不是如果没有适当的培训，而不是提供酒精。
5. Consider liabilities when holding special events.Events can present a range of risks, from injury to patrons who might slip in an area not intended for visitors, to security issues. Consider adding lighting, warning signs and blocking off areas of the brewery that might present tripping hazards or attract children. For larger events, an event management company can provide security and help manage risks.
6. 了解广告责任风险。请注意，在广告和包装中使用受版权保护的名称和徽标。尽早给您自己的啤酒名称，以避免重复名称。
7. Work with an insurance company that works with craft brewers.Working with an insurance carrier with locations in multiple states and a global presence can help brewers as they expand.

“在旅行者，我们了解精酿酿酒师可以提供帮助。”基德说。在全国准备帮助的资源对于回应问题（例如产品召回）可能是有价值的。旅行者拥有一支大规模侵权团队，可以处理大型食品污染损失，带来风险控制和索赔专业人士，这些专业人员了解影响精酿啤酒厂客户的场地和法律。

基德说，工艺啤酒厂如何有效地处理产品召回会影响其从中恢复的能力。“我们可以帮助酿酒商更快地做出响应，设置热线和通话中心，以便我们可以快速，一致地收集信息。”

Immediately starting the intake process on information eliminates any lost time where information can fall through the cracks, and it also provides resources to gather this information where a smaller company may not have the resources to handle mass call volumes.

酿酒师还将希望确保他们拥有各种技能，作为员工的一部分。除了手工艺酿造的专业知识外，从簿记到营销方面，拥有精通业务的员工也可能会有所帮助。工艺酿造协会，例如Brewers Association和Master Brewers Association of America, can be another good source of information for brewers as they grow.

资料来源：
¹https://www.brewersassociation.org/press-room/stats-faqs/
²https://www.fda.gov/food/guidanceregulation/fsma/ucm334115.htm