Covid-19 has significantly impacted the drinks industry, as a result of the closure of the hospitality sector, according to Drinks Ireland, as the latest Revenue figures show that per capita alcohol consumption declined by 6.6% last year. The total volume of consumption was down by 5.1%.
Beer And Cider Hardest Hit
The new data shows that beer and cider have been the hardest hit by the pandemic, as both are mostly consumed in pubs. Beer consumption fell by 17.3% last year. In 2019, 62.7% of beer was consumed in the on-trade, with 37.3% consumed from the off-trade.
Meanwhile, cider consumption fell by 11.4% in 2020.
12% Increase in Wine Sales
Spirits consumption increased marginally, by 0.7%, in line with the growing popularity of premium gins and whiskeys among Irish consumers in recent years.
Finally, wine sales increased by 12%, as generally the majority of wine is consumed from the off-trade. However, this was not enough to offset the overall fall in alcohol consumption.
“There is a growing and misleading narrative that alcohol consumption increased last year during lockdown,” said Patricia Callan, director of Drinks Ireland.
“These Revenue figures show that this is simply not true. While off-trade sales predictably increased when the on-trade was closed, this was not enough to offset the overall fall in alcohol consumption across the board."
© 2021 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Click sign up to subscribe to Checkout.
