You know that something is very wrong if chocolate Santa Clauses appear in supermarkets in August. Although international trade and advances in farming mean that seasonal food supplies are definitely a thing of the past, there are some traditions that should be upheld, even if only for the sake of tradition.

If in need, clinch a deal. With their beer sales under pressure, AB-InBev have branched out into another new hot beverage category which comes by the name of alcoholic Seltzer. In September 2016 they bought the company Boathouse Beverage which produces the SpikedSeltzer brand.

Since September 2016, Ziemann Holvrieka GmbH, Ludwigsburg, has been operating from three sites in North and South America: Miami (Florida) in the USA, the Columbian capital of Bogota and now also San Diego (California) in the USA.

Japan’s brewer Kirin looks to AB-InBev to lift US sales of its flagship beer. Its brand Ichiban will take its place beside other priority brands in AB-InBev’s import beer line-up. In Japan, AB-InBev licenses Kirin to brew and sell Budweiser. In the US, it produces and sells Ichiban for its Japanese partner.

It’s an interesting time for one of the biggest craft brewers in the US. Boston Beer’s sales have declined 5 percent during the first half of 2016, dragging its share price down too.

Only in America. In September 2016 Pabst Brewing started distributing Dog Tag Legacy Lager, a beer in cans that pays tribute to America’s fallen soldiers. Dog Tag Lager is different because consumers will be drinking it with purpose, reinventing the toast and reflecting on the dead.

Krones has signed and completed the purchase of 80 percent of the business of Trans-Market Sales & Equipment Inc. Trans-Market is based in Tampa, Florida/USA, and is a proven leader in providing process engineering and automation solutions for the liquid food industry. The company has revenues of approximately USD 30 million and has a workforce of more than 50 employees. The previous owners of Trans-Market will retain a 20 percent ownership. Krones is financing the acquisition with available funds.

With US craft brewers you can always be in for surprises. Greg Koch to all intents and purposes could become the next Walt Disney or Richard Branson (he who founded the Virgin empire) as he already sports three hats: that of brewer, publican and hotelier.

Thinking that streets must be paved with gold and they only needed to collect it, Scottish brewer BrewDog has launched a USD 50 million (EUR 45 million) crowdfunding round in August 2016, this time in the US, to help fund its new brewery in Ohio. It hopes to raise the money in six months.

Stepping up its foray into craft beer, the number two brewer in the US MillerCoors on 11 August 2016 bought into the Texas-based craft brewer Revolver, making it the third such deal announced in less than a month. Revolver was founded in Granbury, Texas, in 2012 by a father and son, Ron and Rhett Keisler.