Moosehead Breweries, Canada’s oldest independent brewery, has announced that it will no longer sell its beers in bottles beginning early next year.
According to Moosehead Breweries President and CEO Andrew Oland, the decision came as a result of a change in consumer behaviour.
“When I started my career at Moosehead 32 years ago, 90 per cent of the beer being sold in Canada was in bottles,” said Oland in a Tuesday press release. “Today, consumer preference has shifted.”
Oland said that the New Brunswick-based company is “following the lead of Canadians” as it has increasingly become clear that cans are the preferred way of consuming their beverage.
Over the past five years, Canadian breweries have seen a 20 per cent increase in the amount of beer being sold in cans, according to Moosehead.
Currently, only seven per cent of beer in Canada is sold in bottles while 85 per cent is packaged in cans.
The shift in the brewery industry is partly due to cans offering better protection against light and oxygen, slowing down the degradation of beer quality. A switch to cans is also cost effective as production and transportation requires less material and energy.
“This decision to move away from bottles hasn’t been taken lightly — after all, the Moosehead green bottle has been an iconic symbol of our brewery for generations,” said Oland.
The iconic bottle will receive an equally iconic send off as Moosehead launches “The Last Bottle,” a competition that gives its “biggest fan” the opportunity to own the final bottle ever made in Moosehead’s Breweries’ production line.
“We know that the last bottle that comes off the Moosehead production line is more than just a bottle – it’s a piece of Canadian brewing history,” continues Oland. “We want this last bottle to find a worthy home, with a fan who exemplifies Moosehead’s core values; passion, courage and respect.”
The winner of the contest, which closes on Oct. 27, will get an invite to Moosehead Breweries to witness the last-ever bottle run, as well as a tour of the brewery.
Moosehead’s final bottle run will take place in December, however, limited quantities of bottles may be still on Canadian shelves into early 2026.
