Germany develops taste for alcohol-free beer

The production of non-alcoholic beer in Germany almost doubled over the last decade, according to new data published on the occasion of this week’s world beer day, while alcoholic beer consumption has seen a slight downward trend.

Beer is a staple in the German diet: In the first half of 2023, German breweries sold a total of 4.2 billion litres of beer, 3.4 billion (82%) of which were sold within the country.

This amount alone – that is, excluding imported beer – translates to the consumption of around 41 litres per German on average during the first six months this year.

But in the long term, German breweries’ sales are on a slight downward path, according to data published on Tuesday (1 August) by the Federal Statistics Agency. Compared to 10 years ago, this half-year’s sales are down by more than 12%, after a gradual decline over the past decade.

At the same time, beer sales vary widely throughout the year and are significantly higher in the summer months compared to the rest of the year.

Meanwhile, zero-alcohol alternatives are increasingly gaining popularity, according to the agency.

Over the last 10 years, the production of non-alcoholic beer in German grew by 97% to reach around 474 million litres in 2022 – a number that is, however, still far below the billions of litres of alcoholic beer produced each year.

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The increased taste for non-alcoholic beer matches a wider trend of slightly decreasing alcohol consumption in the country.

However, with an average of more than 10 litres of pure alcohol an average citizen consumes in a year, Germans are still among the biggest consumers of alcohol worldwide, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

According to the German health ministry, the economic costs of alcohol consumption amount to €57 billion every year.

Meanwhile, German brewers have been struggling with high input costs, according to their umbrella organisation DBB.

“Like nearly all food and beverage producers, breweries continue to face massive pressures from persistently high and rising costs,” DBB manager Holger Eichele said in a statement in late June.

The association has also been pushing back against the European Commission’s proposal for a packaging and waste regulation, saying it undermines Germany’s established deposit system for plastic and glass bottles.

Outside Germany, too, brewers seem to be struggling. On Monday, Dutch brewery group Heineken adjusted its economic outlook downwards, citing “softer” than foreseen demand and rising costs.

[Edited by Nathalie Weatherald]

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