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Craft beers take off in Mexico

Mexico City, Dec 15 (EFE / EPA).- Craft beers are taking off in Mexico, where the number of microbreweries has soared from 26 in 2011 to 940 today, while production has surged at an average annual rate of 53.29 percent, reaching 189,250 hectoliters (4.9 million gallons) in 2018.(CAMERA: Miguel Angel Andrade)IMAGES ANS SOUNDBITES OF DIEGO LARA, CO-FOUNDER OF THE FALLING PIANO BREWERY, IN MEXICO CITY.TRANSLATION1. "Nowadays people already know and they ask you for certain styles and they know that beer is not either light or dark, you have a more educated public and consumer. A consumer who follows trends outside the country and which, when you bring them here, learns about it and tries it out, gives you feedback, which is something very important. The industry has been slowly transformed, little by little, we're still in diapers, but there's a lot to be done"2. "There isn't very good regulation in terms of craft production. So there are certain gaps, there are certain holes both in the laws and in regulations, which, if there were regulations, we would have access to them, we would be able to work better"3. "We seek to position ourselves as a local brewery for the inhabitants of the city. We strongly believe that a brewery should be integrated into the community. We're not a bar, we're not a club, it's a brewery that is part of a community, it's a place open to art, culture, it's a comfortable place, so what we're looking to do is integrate ourselves that way"4. "I think one of the most important things is the price. Currently, the taxes for the producer are quite high, in the fiscal issue the rules are not so even. That's something that is already being addressed by the Brewers Association, and all the industry is trying to find a rate that is fair"