Diageo to Move Baltimore Blonde Production Out of Maryland

June 16, 2023

FX Matt Brewing Co. of New York, which acquired Maryland’s Flying Dog Brewing production last month, has earned the business.

Andy Hanacek

The Maryland craft brewing business took another hit this week, when Diageo announced that production of Guinness’ Baltimore Blonde beer would be outsourced to a New York brewery, the same company that purchased Flying Dog Brewing and plans to move its production out of Frederick, Md.

Diageo announced in April that it would close its Halethorpe facility this summer and fielded options for moving production elsewhere, the company told local news outlets. Baltimore County officials offered $500,000 in incentives to keep the business, but Diageo eventually awarded it to FX Matt Brewing Co.

FX Matt will now phase in Diageo’s contracted business along with the production of Flying Dog’s portfolio at its Utica, N.Y., facility in the coming months. FX Matt expects to end production in Frederick by August.

The two brewery closures will cause the layoffs of nearly 170 workers, according to news reports.

About the Author

Andy Hanacek | Senior Editor

Andy Hanacek has covered meat, poultry, bakery and snack foods as a B2B editor for nearly 20 years, and has toured hundreds of processing plants and food companies, sharing stories of innovation and technological advancement throughout the food supply chain. In 2018, he won a Folio:Eddie Award for his unique "From the Editor's Desk" video blogs, and he has brought home additional awards from Folio and ASBPE over the years. In addition, Hanacek led the Meat Industry Hall of Fame for several years and was vice president of communications for We R Food Safety, a food safety software and consulting company.