Beer sales suffer from big freeze

• Total beer sales down 5.1 per cent
• Pub beer sales down 8.8 per cent
• Supermarket and off-licence beer sales increase by 0.5 per cent

January’s big freeze hit beer sales, according to the latest UK Quarterly Beer Barometer. Pub beer sales fell by 8.8 per cent in the quarter and overall beer sales were down by 5.1 per cent on the first quarter of 2009.

The exceptional and severe weather in January, which prevented many from going to the pub, was the major contributor to the fall in sales.

Given the continuing fragility in the beer market the BBPA is asking the Government not to increase pressure on the sector unnecessarily by increasing beer taxes in the Budget on 22 June.

The year-on-year change in beer sales is improving – the rate of decline easing to 3.5 per cent in the year to March 2010 from 4.2 per cent in the year previously – indicating that there are some signs of an underlying improvement in the sector.

The five per cent increase in Beer Duty in the 2010 Budget came into effect as the quarter was ending, with fears that an effective increase of 8 pence per pint is likely to have a further depressive effect on future beer sales. The tax increase put a further cost burden of £161 million on the sector, at a time when many pubs are struggling.

The 8.8 per cent fall in pub beer sales means that 6.9 million fewer pints were drunk each week during January, February and March compared with the same period in 2009 – a loss in volume that leaves many pubs under continued pressure.

Sales of beer in supermarkets and shops increased by 0.5 per cent in the first three months of 2010, compared to a fall of 10.1 per cent in the same period in 2009.

Drop in underage pub drinkers

The number of underage drinkers who consume alcohol in pubs and bars has fallen to less than one in 10, government figures have revealed.

Among 11-15 year-olds who claim to drink alcohol in the on-trade, the proportion fell from 13 per cent in 1996 to seven per cent in 2008, the statistics showed.

However over the same period schoolchildren who drink at home rose from 52 per cent to 64 per cent and at parties with friends from 23 to 33 per cent.

Drinking outside, in places such as parks, among the age group increased from 21 per cent to 27 per cent.
However, the NHS Information Centre report showed that the number of school-age children who admitted to having drunk alcohol in the past week fell from 26 per cent in 2001 to 18 per cent in 2008.

Other findings from the study found that in 2008, 72 per cent of adult men were drinking within government guidelines – 21 units a week. For women, 80 per cent said they drank within safe guidelines – 14 units a week.

The figures showed a slight decrease in overall alcohol consumption, but a steady rise in alcohol related deaths to 6,769 in 2008.

Jeremy Beadles, chief executive of the Wine and Spirit Trade Association said: “While we should be concerned by the rise in alcohol related-deaths, it’s clear government efforts to combat alcohol misuse should continue to be focused on the minority of people who drink excessively, not the vast majority who enjoy a drink in moderation.”

But Chris Sorek, chief executive of charity Drinkaware, said it was “shocking” that alcohol-related deaths are again on the increase.

“And with a rise in prescription items dispensed to treat drink dependency - it’s vital now, more than ever, that we act to educate people on the effects of drinking too much before more people come to harm,” he added.