Member Rate Increase and New Member Levels Notification

We love cider! At ACA we are deeply committed to supporting the industry and our members so that the US cider community can be strong today and continue thriving for years to come. 

So it goes without saying, we also love our members. That’s one reason why we haven’t increased our membership dues for more than 7 years. We know your resources are limited, and for this reason, we take our fee structure and your benefits very seriously. But the time has come to adjust our membership rates slightly, so we can continue growing our education and advocacy programming. We are also adding some new membership levels to better meet demand.

PAYING DUES EARLY

If you would like to pay your next annual dues early, we will be happy to honor the current rate before the increases take place on July 1. Please contact our membership and engagement coordinator Miranda for more information. 

VOTING LEVEL MEMBERS

Active US Cideries (Organizational Membership Type)

The American Cider Association’s bylaws define voting level members as any commercial producer of cider and/or perry with production in the United States of America with a valid, current Federal winery license issued by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB)–a requirement for all commercial cider producers in the United States. 

Voting level member dues will increase on July 1, 2024. The range in increase will depend on your membership level. These increases will help the ACA to continue delivering relevant and impactful programs to support your business’s bottom line, make your life easier with access to helpful resources and expertise, and cultivate a healthy US cider industry and community.

These memberships are an example of an Organizational Membership Type, where all employees are eligible and included in the membership for no additional cost. 

US Commercial Cidery Membership Levels	Prior Dues	New Dues	Rate Increase
Annual production of 1-5,000 gal/year	$175	$185	6%
Annual production of 5,001-25,000 gal/year	$350	$370	6%
Annual production of 25,001-100,000 gal/year	$500	$550	10%
Annual production of 100,001-500,000 gal/year	$1,000	$1,150	15%
Annual production of 500,001-1,000,000 egal/year	$2,000	$2,300	15%
Annual production of > 1,000,000 gal/year	$3,000	$3,450	15%

ALLIED MEMBERS

Allied members are not voting level members per ACA’s bylaws.

Cideries-in-planning (Organizational Membership Type)

Before a cidery begins commercial production, they may join as allied members to get access to the helpful resources available to ACA members.  

• The dues for US-based Cidery-In-Planning members will increase 6% to $185 annually. 
• The new Cidery-In-Planning member type for International Members will be $196 annually.

Enthusiasts (Individual Membership Type)

We are excited to add a second enthusiast type membership specifically for bartenders, sommeliers, beverage directors, chefs and other food, beverage and hospitality professionals. 

• The Hospitality membership type will be $75 per person annually. 
• The home cidermaker/enthusiast membership will remain $75 per person annually.

Retailers, Bars, Restaurants and Wholesalers (Organizational Membership Type)

Retailers, bars, restaurants or wholesalers who sign up as allied members can include all their employees in their membership with no added fee. 

• Independent Retailers, Bars, Restaurants and Wholesalers: $250 per company annually
• Corporate and Chain Retailers, Bars, Restaurants: $385 per company annually

Allied Trade (Organization Membership Type)

The ACA is lucky to have the support of vendors, suppliers, service providers and partner organizations who believe in our programming to support the cider industry. (Please note that Allied Trade member benefits apply to an organization’s employees, not members, volunteers, subsidiaries or clients.)

• Allied Trade Memberships: $375 per company per year

Orchards (Organizational Membership Type)

We are adding two different types of farm memberships for fruit growers based on farm revenue. For now these memberships use the USDA farm designations to differentiate. We are developing specific benefits for our grower members, and are looking into how to designate our members that are both growers and cider producers. Stay tuned!

• Family Farms (<$500,000 gross annual sales): $195 per farm annually
• Commercial Farms (>$500,000 gross annual sales) $375 per farm annually

International Cider Producer Members (Organizational Membership Type)

We are privileged to have international cideries participate in ACA programming year round. We’re refining our international cidery level member fees as follows:

Int’l Commercial Cidery Membership Levels	Dues
Annual production of 1-5,000 gal/year	$ 196
Annual production of 5,001-25,000 gal/year	$ 383
Annual production of 25,001-100,000 gal/year	$ 567
Annual production of 100,001-500,000 gal/year	$ 1,155
Annual production of 500,001-1,000,000 gal/year	$ 2,300
Annual production of > 1,000,000 gal/year	$ 3,500

THANK YOU, MEMBERS! 

We’re looking forward to continuing working with you and for you! Together we can grow and nurture a robust and diverse cider industry. We appreciate your support. We can’t do it without you!