The Brewers Association (BA) published further details Friday on requirements to enter the 2022 Craft Brewers Conference (CBC) & BrewExpo America in Minneapolis, which include proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test.
Attendees, exhibitors and staff must provide either proof of full vaccination, negative PCR test results within 72 hours of entry, or negative Rapid viral/antigen test results within 48 hours of entry.
The BA is following CDC definitions of “full vaccination” as either 1 shot of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, or two shots of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Modern vaccines.
“Currently, booster shots are not required to be considered ‘fully vaccinated,’” the BA wrote on the CBC website. “If CDC changes the definition of ‘fully vaccinated’ to include boosters, we will too.”
The BA has partnered with CLEAR and is encouraging attendees to download the CLEAR app and Health Pass, which verifies vaccination status or negative test results to “expeditie entry into Craft Brewers Conference.” The app provides a scannable tile which can be presented at registration for “faster entry.”
For international attendees or those who choose not to use the CLEAR app, a physical or digital proof of the entry requirements will be allowed, if accompanied with a valid ID. Photos of a COVID-19 vaccination record card will be accepted, if there are images of the front and back of the card, according to the CBC website.
Both PCR and Antigen test results must include “verification form your home state testing provider that the test was supervised and identification verified” or verification from a Minnesota Department of Health testing site. Minneapolis testing sites are available here.
“We will follow local and federal guidelines in force at the time of the event regarding other safety protocols,” Ann Obenchain, BA marketing and communications director, told Brewbund. “As of today, masks are optional for visitors to the Minneapolis Convention Center.”
This year’s event takes place May 2-5. Registration opened January 11.
Last year, CBC attendees in Denver, Colorado, were not required to show proof of vaccination or negative test results. They were required to complete a health evaluation before each day, and masks were required to be worn whenever inside the Denver Convention Center, as required by the city at the time.
The 2021 event – which was postponed from March 2021 until September 2021, and moved from San Diego to Denver – also required attendees to pre-register for sessions in order to enter breakout rooms. Attendees’ badges were scanned prior to each session to verify pre-registration and allow entry. This year, attendees are “asked to pre-register for room & capacity planning,” Obenchain said, but no session registration mandates have been published.
In February, BA president and CEO Bob Pease estimated on the Brewbound Podcast that the attendance level of this year’s event would be “bigger than Denver 2021,” – which had a capacity of 7,000 attendees – “but not to the level of Denver 2019,” which he estimated had 14,000 attendees.
A color-coded sticker system was also used last year to let attendees show their comfort level with social distancing. The system will not be in effect this year, Obenchain said.