New figures show UK alcohol consumption down 3.3 per cent in 2012
2012 was the first year since 1998 that alcohol consumption has dropped below eight litres per head, per year (7.99 litres). Consumption per head is now 16 percent lower than it was in 2004 when the current trend began, says the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA), which has compiled the new data based on HMRC alcohol tax returns.
Commenting on the data, Brigid Simmonds, BBPA Chief Executive, said: "Total alcohol consumption is now 16 percent lower per head than in 2004, when this trend began. While alcohol misuse remains a problem for a minority that we must all work to tackle, it is also important that the debate is fully informed by the latest facts on levels of consumption."
The British Beer & Pub Association is the UK’s leading organisation representing the brewing and pub sector. Its members account for 96 percent of the beer brewed in the UK and around half of Britain’s 50,000 pubs.
The amount Britons drink has fallen yet again
(The data were compiled by the British Beer & Pub Association, from data published on 28 February 2013 in the HMRC Alcohol Bulletin. Figures are based on total alcohol released into the UK market, so it is not based on sampled or survey data)
