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How many breweries is too many? Craft beer industry market saturation was recently discussed by Founders Brewing Co. CEO Mike Stevens in a Draft Magazine story.

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GRAND RAPIDS, MI — “I wouldn’t want to be a startup brewery right now.”

That's from Mike Stevens, CEO of Founders Brewing Co. in Grand Rapids, speaking to a Draft Magazine writer for a piece exploring beer industry jitters over the ballooning number of craft breweries across the country in recent years.

Is the industry nearing a saturation point? That’s the crux of writer Joe Stange’s piece, which includes comments from brewery owners like Stevens and Greg Koch of San Diego’s Stone Brewing Co., who predicts a looming “bump in the road.”

Locally, the topic is a conversation starter at any brewery in West Michigan, where everyone from the owner to the guy at the end of the bar is apt to give you his two cents on how many is too many when it comes to new market players.

Stevens has addressed the notion before, saying in November that part of the Founders growth strategy is to reach a size where it can command the attention of distributors and retailers, whom he expects to eventually be overwhelmed by the amount of new breweries competing for shelf space.

"We will see a bit of a bubble burst in the next five years or so," he said during a live chat with MLive readers at the Founders 15-year anniversary party.

“However, this industry is here to stay and the brewers that are focused on the art and passion of making great beer will have a place. Beyond that, new breweries will need to focus on something narrow; don't try and be like everyone else.”

What do you think? Is there room in the West Michigan beer market for new players, or are we hitting the saturation point? Is a local brewery closure inevitable sooner or later? What might a beer bubble burst look like in Michigan?

Tell us your thoughts below.

Email Garret Ellison or follow him on Twitter.