Spanish beer manufacturers rule out that there are supply problems in the country due to the high weight of national production, which accounts for 90% of sales , and they hope to recover their pre-covid income levels by the end of 2022
. advances in an interview, the general director of the employers’ association Cerveceros de Espana, Jacobo Olalla , who downplays the impact on the sector of the collapse of the international transport system, contrary to what happens in beverages such as spirits or wines, where Some difficulties are already being registered. “In our case there may be a temporary problemin a specific brand, but the big difference is that 90% of the beer consumed in Spain is produced in the country,” he argues.
For the moment, these tensions in the supply chain have not affected Spanish exports of beer either. beer, according to his data, and the difficulties are concentrated in any case in imported
brands.Olalla assures that there are no major setbacks with raw materials , despite their notable increase in price: “Removing some of the hops, almost all the malted barley , the corn and the rice that we use are also produced in Spain”.
However, the employer responsible stresses that the situation will not worsenif it is a temporary issue that is resolved in the short term, but it could be if it acquires a structural nature.
Sales grow, but are still below 2019
Asked about the recovery of the sector after the health crisis caused by covid-19, the director of Brewers acknowledges that there is “optimism” and that they already notice improvement compared to last year, but still they will close 2021 with less income than in 2019. “The last quarter of this year is going to be good, especially compared to a year ago, which was a horror. But they are not the strongest months for beer,” recalls Olalla in allusion to the fact that it is a drink whose sales peak occurs in summer and with heat.
According to their figures, between January and September 2021, beer sales in the hospitality industry were between 25 and 30% below those before the pandemic, reflecting that the recovery of bars and restaurants is not yet complete.
In fact, beer manufacturers were among the main victims of the closure of the hospitality industry due to covid-19 and the restrictions, since this channel represented 70% of consumption in volume and 82% of income.
They still do not manage forecasts on how this market mix will be distributed between sales in bars and in the supermarket once the health crisis is over, but they insist that in the hotel industry the profit margins for each liter sold are significantly higher. “There is a great desire to go out, but consumption in the hotel industry depends on the consumer’s perception and we have already detected that disposable income is falling and inflation continues to rise, the increase in prices can affect a lot. People will continue to drink beer , but more at home,” predicts Olalla.
Another key factor in order to return to pre-covid sales levels is when international tourism will return: “We received almost 90 million people and 60% came from countries with a great beer tradition, with high per capita consumption, such as Germany or UK”.
The employer manager admits that the closure of bars and restaurants also affects the sector – it is estimated that in the last year and a half they lowered the blind between 10 and 20% of the almost 300,000 establishments registered in Spain -, and perceives a greater impact in the beach bars and seasonal places that open only in summer.
In this context, Olalla demands stability from the Administration, considers that this is not the time to increase fiscal pressure and warns that any tax increase that ends up affecting consumption “will delay the recovery and harm employment.”
