According to This Chart That Ranks Countries by Beer Consumption, China Is Beer Country

Beer, like coffee, is one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world. While it’s now a popular social drink, centuries ago, it served as a source of nutrients and calories, essentially acting as “liquid bread” to sustain civilizations. The Romans, for instance, had a strong brewing industry to supply their legions. Today, the global beer industry is interconnected and prevalent in many countries around the world.

The chart from Visual Capitalist below reveals the countries that consume the most beer, with a long-standing leader in this category:

The countries that drink the most beer. The data is sourced from the Kirin Group, a Japanese holding company known for its smooth-flavored beer, and reflects the market trends in 2022. We’ll need to wait for the next report to know the global beer consumption in 2023, but for now, let’s take a look at the top beer-consuming countries in 2022:

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Asia’s topping the chart. China continues to dominate the global beer market for the 20th consecutive year. The country experienced a 1% year-on-year increase, while Japan also saw a significant rise in beer consumption, with a 2.5% increase over the previous year. Overall, the Asian market grew by 4.9% in 2022, achieving a global market share of 33.9%. China alone holds a global share of 21.9% of beer consumption.

Europe is following closely. Europe isn’t far behind Asia, with its global beer consumption share standing at 25.8%. In fact, the continent has a strong tradition in brewing and now aims to become a major producer of non-alcoholic beer. Conversely, European countries lead in beer consumption per capita, with nine of the top ten places in the ranking occupied by European nations.

These data show some interesting trends. For instance, the Czech Republic has held the top spot in beer consumption for 30 years. Additionally, Ireland, known for its beer culture, has “only” made a significant jump from 15th place in 2021 to fourth place in 2022.

Differences between markets. If we focus on the top three countries that consume the most beer, China consumes slightly more (up 1%) than the previous year. Meanwhile, the U.S. consumes considerably less (down 4.2%), and Brazil considerably more (up 3.6%). Mexico, which is the fourth largest beer-consuming market with a 5.2% share, also experienced significant growth (14.5%).

Now, let’s examine the top three countries, which account for 40% of the world’s total beer consumption:

• China: It’s both the world’s largest beer producer and consumer. In 2023, 7,000 beer-related companies, with popular brands such as Snow Beer and Tsingtao, opened in the country. Local industry consumption accounts for 90% of the total, and revenues for this year are expected to reach $124.2 billion.
• U.S.: The most popular beer in the country is Modelo Especial (Mexican), but overall, U.S. consumers prefer domestic beer (63.6% share), while imported beer (23.2%) and craft beer (13.3%) are gaining ground. The market is expected to reach $116.9 billion this year.
• Brazil: Lager is the most popular beer in the Latin American country, while Brahma is the most valuable brand. By 2024, the Brazilian market is expected to generate $49.3 billion in revenue.

The impact of the Russia-Ukraine war. Interestingly, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine has affected beer consumption in both countries. Ukraine, which was ranked 18th in country consumption in 2021, dropped to 27th in 2022 after a 25.7% decrease. In Russia, there was a smaller decrease of 4.9%, probably due to the nature of the war.

Image | Elevate (via Unsplash)

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