Figures on beer consumption in the country.
18 breweries as well as 14 pubs and home breweries emit over a million hectoliters of beer in the province of Salzburg. Brewing even small amounts of beer has become popular in recent years, because regarding twenty years ago there were only eight breweries in Salzburg. Around 90 percent of the breweries in Austria are small and micro breweries with a maximum annual output of 20,000 hectoliters. However, three quarters of the total volume is produced by seven breweries, which emit 0.5 to 1.5 million hectoliters of beer per year.
100 liters of beer was roughly the annual per capita consumption in recent years. For comparison: around 1890 the record value was around 200 liters. Two thirds of the beers consumed are lagers/March beers, while full, special and bock beers account for almost 20 percent. Alcohol-free beers and shandies each account for around three percent of beer consumption and are therefore consumed at roughly the same rate. The rest is divided between Pils, wheat, creative and light beers. In an international comparison, per capita consumption in the Czech Republic, at 135 to 140 liters, is significantly higher than in Austria, Germany and Poland with the aforementioned 100 liters per capita.
Two thirds of the beer are marketed in 0.33 liter and 0.5 liter glass bottles. Another quarter is canned. While sales in glass bottles have gained in importance over the last decade, the share of draft beer has fallen from just under 25 percent in 2011 to around ten percent in 2021. This implies that currently around 85 percent of beer is sold in retail and only 15 percent are sold in the catering trade. Ten years ago, 30 percent of beer was sold in gastronomy.
Selected: Josef Fersterer, Statistics State of Salzburg
Sources: Association of Austrian Breweries, Statistics Austria
Edited: 2/24/2023
