More beer sold in supermarkets than in pubs

For the first time ever, in 2015, more beer was sold in supermarkets and off-licences than in Britain’s 145,000 pubs, clubs, hotels and restaurants. According to a recent report by the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA), of the 44 million hl beer sold, 51 percent found its way to consumers via the off-trade channel. The remaining 49 percent was sold through pubs, clubs and other licensed premises.

In 2000, more than two-thirds of beer was drunk in pubs and other on-trade locations, while the figure was almost 80 percent in 1990. This shows that supermarket sales of beer have been on the rise for decades so it probably was just a matter of time before they would overtake pub sales. The BBPA thinks that the reason for consumers switching to buy their beer in supermarkets is the huge difference in prices, not least during promotions.

At supermarkets prices for a pint of beer vary between GBP 0.65 and GBP 1.0 (USD 0.80 – USD 1.2) whereas the average pub price of a pint of draught lager is in a range between GBP 2.40 and GBP 4.70 (USD 3.0 – USD 5.80). On-trade prices of beer have gone up by nearly 40 percent since 2005.

As well as more drinkers opting to buy supermarket beer to drink at home, changing tastes in pubs and bars have also had an impact on beer sales. The popularity of wine has been steadily building, while cider and alcopops have gone in and out of fashion, on each occasion taking market share from traditional beer choices.

Overall, the amount of beer drunk in the UK last year was 44 million hl and has remained close to that level for the last four years. Before that, beer consumption declined by more than 12 percent between 2006 and 2009, due to factors including increased duty, the smoking ban in pubs and shrinking disposable incomes, says the BBPA.

The number of pubs in Britain has not stopped declining. There were just 50,800 pubs in operation in 2015, down from 58,200 in 2005.

Latest figures suggest the average Briton drinks the equivalent of 67.7 litres of beer a year, slightly less than the European average of 72 litres.

This has not stopped the rise of microbreweries, though. It’s been estimated that there are now 1,700 microbreweries in the UK.