EU’s Alcoholic Beer Production Drops 5% Last Year

The member-states of the European Union (EU) have produced 32.5 billion litres of beer containing alcohol and 1.8 billion litres of beer with less than 0.5% alcohol or with no alcohol content at all, totalling 34.3 billion litres last year.

Compared with 2022, the production of beer with alcohol in the EU decreased by 5% (-1.7 billion litres). When it came to beer without alcohol, there was an increase of 13.5% compared with 2022 (+0.2 billion litres), Eurostat said.

Despite its growth, the non-alcoholic beer market faces challenges, including health concerns over higher amounts of sugar used to enhance flavour and body in the absence of alcohol.

Concerning the production of beer with alcohol, in 2023, Germany continued to be the top producer with 7.2 billion litres (22.3% of the total EU production).

Germany was followed by Spain, with 4 billion litres produced (12.4% of total EU production), Poland with 3.5 billion litres (10.8%), the Netherlands with 2.4 billion litres (7.5%) and Belgium with 2 billion litres (6.3%).

Netherlands Top Exporter

As in previous years, trade data show that the Netherlands continued to lead as the top exporter of beer containing alcohol in 2023. The Netherlands exported a total (intra- and extra-EU) of 1.8 billion litres of beer containing alcohol in 2023, accounting for 21.5% of the total EU countries’ beer exports. Compared with 2022, this EU country saw a decrease of 0.1 billion litres in beer exports.

The Netherlands was followed by Germany and Belgium (both exporting 1.4 billion litres), Czechia and Ireland (both 0.5 billion litres).

For imports, France continued to be the largest importer of beer containing alcohol in 2023, with 0.9 billion litres, representing 17.1% of EU total (intra- and extra-EU) imports. The other big importers were Italy with more than 0.7 billion litres, and Spain, the Netherlands and Germany each with almost 0.6 billion litres.

UK Biggest Exporter & Importer from EU

When it came to main destinations for beer (with alcohol) exports to non-EU countries, the UK (0.8 billion litres; 22.8% of total extra-EU beer exports) and the US (0.6 billion litres; 16.1%) were the main partners, followed by Russia (0.3 billion litres; 8.4%), China (0.3 billion litres; 7.3%), and Cuba (0.2 billion litres; 5.2%).

Imports of beers containing alcohol from countries outside the EU are marginal compared to imports within the EU. When importing from non-EU countries, EU countries favoured British beer (0.3 billion litres; 57.6% of all extra-EU imports of beer in 2023 and Mexican beer (0.1 billion litres; 17.2%), Eurostat said.

Rise in Breweries

Meanwhile, Simon Spillane, Head of Operations at The Brewers of Europe, said that the number of active breweries in the EU rose again – from 9500 in 2021 to 9,680 in 2022, still a far cry from the increases at the end of the last decade.

“Beer is deeply entrenched in European history and there is a unique cultural heritage in beer. We need to constantly evolve while staying true to our essence to ensure a positive future. So let us raise a virtual toast to the brewers, the artisans, beer sellers and the enthusiasts who contribute to this ever-evolving story,” he added.