Sales of Germany’s iconic beverage take backseat amid Covid pandemic

Germany’s Federal Statistical Office, Destatis, reported on Tuesday that beer sales across the country continued to decline in 2021, falling 2.2% year-on-year due to coronavirus-related restrictions. Statistics showed that sales had already been down 5.5% in 2020 from the previous year.

According to Destatis, German-based breweries and distributors sold about 8.5 billion liters (2.2 billion gallons) of beer in 2021.

Beer sales have been declining in the country for years as a result of health concerns and other factors, but lockdowns have added to a downward trend. Сlosed restaurants and canceled major events and festivals where large amounts of beer are usually consumed impacted sales, the agency said. 

There were particularly steep year-on-year drops of 27% and 19.1% respectively in January and February, when full lockdown measures were in place across the country. 

Domestic sales are most important for Germany’s breweries, as they make up around 83% of the total. The statistics office said that beer sales inside the country were 3.4% lower than in 2020 and 8.6% lower than in 2019.

Beer exports to other countries in the European Union plunged 4%, while exports to countries outside the trade bloc were up 12.7%.

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