Beer sales drop

The beer market recorded a drop in sales, by 2.4 percent y/y in volume and by 1.3 percent in value last year according to the Nielsen study. “Consumers bought less beer, but were willing to spend more on it, hence the drop in sales value was smaller than the decrease in its volume,” said Agata Lorenc from Nielsen. The survey also showed that the sales of non-alcoholic beers grew the most (22.9 percent), followed by specialty beers (16.9 percent). “For several seasons, we have been observing the unwavering interest of consumers in light and non-alcoholic beers, the latter being unmatched in terms of growth dynamics. Consumers are becoming less interested in strong alcoholic drinks, which is a result of more balanced lifestyle, part of which is moderate alcohol consumption,” said Andrew Highcock from the Union of Employers of Brewing Industry. The survey shows that beer consumption in Poland is stable and fluctuations in sales volumes and values ​​are small. In 2016, Poland was the third beer producer in Europe (41.37 million hectoliters), after Germany (94.96 million hectoliters) and the United Kingdom (43.73 million hectoliters). In terms of consumption, it was fourth (37.9 million hectoliters), after Germany (85.53 million hectoliters), Great Britain (43.73 million hectoliters), and Spain (38.63 million hectoliters).