Rockingham County brewery that employs 500 closing

A brewery that employs 500 people in the Rockingham County city of Eden is closing its doors.

County and city officials confirm to local media outlets on Monday that the MillerCoors brewery will close within a year.

County officials say the closing will cost the county, in addition to the lost jobs, about $1.2 million in annual revenue.

According to the company’s website, the brewery opened in 1978. It has an annual brewing capacity of 9 million barrels.

The steady sales erosion was caused by “economic challenges, an explosion of choice and fragmentation within the beer business, and a dramatic change in the way consumers engage with brands,” according to a company statement.

Both MillerCoors, the nation’s No. 2 brewer, and No. 1 brewer Anheuser-Busch have seen sales drop among such larger brands as Miller Lite, Coors Light, Bud Light and Budweiser, with craft beers taking an increasingly larger share of overall beer sales.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel contributed.

This story was originally published September 14, 2015 at 4:41 PM with the headline "Rockingham County brewery that employs 500 closing."