Beer sales in the retail channel in Portugal reached €1.09 billion in the year ending April 2018, representing 4% growth in value terms, according to a study published by Nielsen.
More than 40% of the beer was consumed in the period between June to September. This was mainly due to weather conditions, holiday season, popular festivals and the increased presence of tourists.
The study also found that beer accounts for more than 5% of the total sales in grocery stores. The growth of consumption in households reflects greater penetration of the channel and increased purchase frequency.
The category was bought nine times on average during the period (once every 40 days) by consumers, and they spent an average of €5.10 per visit.
Consumers Seek New Products
Another trend pointed out by Nielsen is that consumers are more prone to new experiences and seek to taste new products. This justifies the price growth in the category, which mainly occurred in the mainstream beer channel.
In the HoReCa channel, beer posted €809 million worth of sales and saw growth of 4% during the same period.
A Eurostat study reveals that Portugal is the third highest country in the EU in terms of beer production growth in 2017, with the sector growing by 11% year-on-year, surpassed only by The Netherlands (+48%) and the UK (+14%).
The latest available data from Cervejeiros de Portugal (the Portuguese Association of Beer Producers) shows that beer consumption grew 8% in 2017 and exports rose 12.6% to 200 million litres. Per-head consumption reached 51 hl, as against 47 hl in 2016.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
