Many retailers are getting hit especially hard right now because of lockdown orders or at least the reduced numbers of consumers going out. Restaurants rely on diners, and many breweries rely on draft sales in their taprooms. In short, hospitality staff (including servers, bartenders, and dishwashers) are taking the brunt of the economic damage. Many have been laid off as businesses reduce to a skeleton crew, and those that have held onto their jobs are seeing reduced hours. It’s a crisis for most hospitality workers as many already struggled to meet lifestyle needs, especially in large cities where living costs are higher.

Other Half Brewing Co, located in Brooklyn, New York, have launched a worldwide campaign called “All Together” to support the industry through these hard times. They have released a base recipe that they’ve asked breweries to use, but with their own original alteration–perhaps something using local ingredients. They’ve also released label designs (if breweries are going to package it) and the website lists all the participating breweries, together with a map. As of this writing (mid-April), there are 613 breweries from 40 countries to have signed up. The organizers ask that breweries donate a portion of the proceeds to hospitality professionals. The website features a list of the participating breweries, and beneath their name, some have linked to organizations they are supporting.

We’ve already reported that Kyoto Brewing Company is a participant, and will release their beer in early May. Other participants (at the time of this writing in mid-April) include: Nomcraft Brewing (Wakayama), Kyoto Beer Lab (Kyoto), Vertere (Tokyo), West Coast Brewing (Shizuoka), Matsumoto Brewery (Nagano), Ushitora (Tochigi), Uchu Brewing (Yamanashi), Two Rabbits Brewing Company (Shiga). Expect beers from this campaign to be released very soon.

What can you do as a consumer? You know–drink the beer! It would be great if you could try the beers from all participating Japanese breweries.