During Breast Cancer Awareness Month each October, organizations across the country work together to raise awareness about a disease that affects millions of women around the world.  In 2013, Idaho-based Sockeye Brewing has partnered with CROWN Beverage Packaging North America, a business unit of Crown Holdings, Inc. (Crown, crowncork.com), to launch its flagship Dagger Falls IPA brand in limited-edition pink cans. 

Available in local stores beginning in early October, the 12-ounce cans feature laser-etched tabs that depict the brewers’ logo–the Sockeye salmon–and display the ‘Cans for Care’ seal to inform consumers at the point of purchase that a percentage of proceeds from the sale will be donated to a charitable cause. Recipients of the donations include two Idaho organizations: the Mountain State Tumor Institute of St. Luke’s Hospital and St. Alfonso’s Cancer Care.

Several local retailers are matching charitable contributions from the sales of the pink Dagger Falls IPA can. These include Albertsons, the Brewforia Beer Market, Boise Co-op, Bier: Thirty, Brewer's Haven, Whole Foods Market Boise and WinCo. Beer aficionados not located in the Idaho area can purchase the pink cans via Brewforia’s website. Crown provided support for Sockeye’s initiative from the outset while also contributing directly to the campaign.

“Breast cancer is such an important issue that we really wanted to be involved with raising awareness, but to do so in a manner that’s unique to Sockeye. The pink cans allow us to do just that,” explains Dawn Bolen, marketing assistant, Sockeye Brewing. “Crown has been an incredibly helpful and supportive partner throughout the process; we couldn’t have done this without them. There’s already been such positive early feedback on the initiative from retailers and consumers that we are exploring how to repeat the collaboration next year.”

Discussions of the project began in May of this year, with Crown laying the groundwork over the summer to begin filling cans in September. Crown worked closely with Sockeye throughout the process, providing counsel on the overall can design, color schemes and the proper ink weights necessary to achieve the vivid pink shade. The Dagger Falls IPA was canned with the special-edition design and then shipped to participating retailers by Stein Distributing Co. Inc.

“The development of the Dagger Falls pink cans has been a tremendous opportunity to give back to the local Idaho community, inspire interest in a truly worthy cause and for Crown to support a greatpartner in continuing to deliver a quality product,” says Brian Thiel, craft brand manager,  CROWN Beverage Packaging North America. “Cans have enabled the Sockeye Brewing brand to grow, and with the ‘Cans for Care’ project, they offer away to connect with consumers through a charitable cause.”

Crown and Sockeye established a strong partnership before collaborating on this initiative. When Sockeye was first transitioning to metal packaging, Crownoffered the flexibility to bring three of the brewery’s labels to market in cans simultaneously.

“When tryingto boost production of Dagger Falls to keep up with growing consumer demand, cans were a logical choice,” explains Bolen. “Not only do they retain the beer’s freshness and improvetheshelf life, but they are also light weightand easily recyclable. Their robustness also makes them ideally suited for enjoying during outdoor recreational activities, like boating and rafting, both of which are huge industries in Idaho. Crown was the ideal partner for Sockeye, providing quality packaging and the level of service and expertisethat we needed.”