Is America facing a beer crisis?

As it’s done for nearly a quarter of a century, Anheuser-Busch (BUD) will once again roll out splashy commercials during the Super Bowl to get people talking about Budweiser and, hopefully, drinking it. But a new report suggests that young adults—the prime demographic for these advertisements—will need a lot of persuading. U.S. beer sales have declined in recent years and aren’t showing many signs of improving, according to a new report by consumer research firm Mintel. There were 2.79 million cases of beer sold in 2013, broadly flat compared with the 2.78 million cases sold in 2012 and down from 2.9 million cases sold five years ago. And, worse, beer sales are expected to rise by just 4% to 2.89 million cases within the next four years. Baby boomers—many of whom don’t drink as much as they did when they were younger—are one reason for the lack of growth in beer sales in recent years, the research finds, and young adults in 2014 account for a smaller share of the population than boomers and retirees. What’s more, the drinking habits of young Americans have changed dramatically in recent years, studies show. Beer drinking among 18- to 29-year-olds fell from 71% in the years 1992 to 1994, to 41% from 2012 to 2013, according to a separate 2013 survey by Gallup; sales of liquor rose from 13% to 28%, and wine rose from 14% to 24% over the same period. In a separate 2013 survey by Mintel, 80% of respondents ages 22 to 24 said they drink liquor, while just 69% said they drink domestic beer. And 66% of respondents agesmore

25 to 34 said they drink liquor; 58%, beer. “These results illustrate the competition the market faces from other types of alcohol, especially among young people,” says Jennifer Zegler, drinks analyst at Mintel...

 First bullets and now beer.  Add to that incandescent light bulbs and we'll all be sitting around in the dark drinking well water and playing with our slingshot.