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August 10, 2015

Kirin Beer University Report
Global Beer Production by Country in 2014

Global beer production recorded a decline for the first time in 30 years. Asia remained the No.1 beer producing region for 6 consecutive years.

Kirin Company, Limited (President and CEO: Yoshinori Isozaki) operates the Kirin Beer University, a virtual university on the Internet. (http://www.kirin.co.jp/entertainment/daigaku/) It was established in July 2001 to inform our customers of the pleasure provided by beer and its background. The various faculties and facilities—open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year—show how to enjoy drinking delicious beer and offer an interesting stock of knowledge about beer.

In this report, we publish details of global beer production in 171 major countries and regions for the year of 2014. The report is based on findings obtained from questionnaires sent to brewers’ associations around the world, as well as the latest industry statistics available overseas. Kirin has been tracking global beer production since 1974.

Summary
Global beer production amounted to 191 million kiloliters in 2014 (down 0.5% year-on-year), recording a decline for the first time in 30 years.
Asia (down 1.7% year-on-year with a share of 33.9%) marked its 6th consecutive year as the top producing region. Africa (up 5.2% year-on-year with a share of 7.3%), which ranked 5th, marked its 14th consecutive year of growth.
China (down 3.1% year-on-year) remained the largest beer producing country for 13 consecutive years, followed by United States (up 0.2% year-on-year) and Brazil (up 5.0% year-on-year). Japan (down 1.1% year-on-year) ranked 7th, the same as the previous year. Among the top-10 countries, Russia (down 8.2% year-on-year) ranked lower than Mexico (with 0.0% change year-on-year), interchanging their rankings for the first time in 14 years.

In 2014, global beer production amounted to 191 million kiloliters, with a decrease of about 1.05 million kiloliters (or a 0.5% decrease) year-on-year. If the volume of the Tokyo Dome Stadium was compared to a beer jug, this would be equivalent to about 154 jugs (Tokyo Dome has a volume of around 1.24 million kiloliters). Although production declined for the first time in 30 years since 1984, the year-on-year difference was about the same as the previous year, with a decrease of 0.5%.

1. Global Beer Production by Region in 2014 (Table 1)

・Production decreased in Asia, Europe, and Oceania, and increased in other regions.

・In Asia (down 1.7% year-on-year), which marked its 6th consecutive year as the largest producing region, Vietnam (up 9.0% year-on-year) and India (up 0.5% year-on-year) saw an increase, but factors such as China (down 3.1% year-on-year) and Thailand’s (down 3.2% year-on-year) decrease affected the region’s total production volume.

・Africa (up 5.2% year-on-year), which ranked 5th, marked its 14th consecutive year of growth.

2. Global Beer Production by Country in 2014 (Table 2)

・China (down 3.1% year-on-year) remained the largest producing country for 13 consecutive years.

・Russia (down 8.2% year-on-year) ranked lower than Mexico (with 0.0% change year-on-year) for the first time in 14 years, consequently interchanging the rankings of these two countries.

・Among the top 25 countries, production increased consecutively for more than 10 years in 3 countries – Nigeria (16 years), Vietnam (14 years), and India (12 years).

・Australia (down 2.6% year-on-year) ranked in the top 25 countries for the first time in 3 years.

・Japan (down 1.1% year-on-year) remained in 7th, and did not change its ranking from the previous year.

3. Global Beer Production by Country in 2014 in Comparison to 2004 (Table 3)

・From 2004 to 2014, Global beer production increased by about 37.26 million kiloliters (with a 24.2% increase).

・In comparison to 2004, China (about 17.18 million kiloliters) showed the highest growth in beer production volume, followed by Brazil (about 5.42 million kiloliters) and Vietnam (about 2.72 million kiloliters). By growth rate, Vietnam (3.3 times) showed significant growth, followed by Nigeria (2.9 times) and India (2.9 times).

・Within the decade, three countries moved its rankings up to the top 25 – Vietnam (27th to 10th), Nigeria (28th to 13th), and India (34th to 20th).

The Kirin Group is committed to creating a new beverage culture side by side with our consumers, and fostering well-being and prosperity among people and communities.

  • Note: Production volume in Japan combines beer, low-malt beer, and no-malt beer.
    Among the countries whose previous figures were revised for this year’s report, the revised figures are used to calculate year-on-year changes.
  • Source: Questionnaire surveys from brewers’ associations in major countries, conducted by Kirin Company, Limited
    The Barth Report Hops 2013/2014 (BARTH−HAAS GROUP)

Table 1: Global Beer Production by Region in 2014

■ Beer production by region, growth rate, and market share by region in 2014

  • * Production volume in Japan combines beer, low-malt beer, and no-malt beer.
  • * May not sum up to total due to rounding.

Comments

  • Production in Asia, Europe, and Oceania decreased, and increased in the other regions.
  • Asia (down 1.7% year-on-year) remained the largest producing region for 6 consecutive years, but its production declined for the first time in 38 years, being affected by a decrease in the top producing countries such as China (down 3.1% year-on-year) and Thailand (down 3.2% year-on-year).
  • Middle East (up 4.4% year-on-year) saw an increase for the first time in 3 years, and production in Oceania (down 2.9% year-on-year) declined for the first time in 2 years.
  • Africa (up 5.2% year-on-year) marked its 14th consecutive year of growth.

■ Global Beer Production by Region (%) in 2014

Table 2: Global Beer Production by Country in 2014

  • * Production volume in Japan combines beer, low-malt beer, and no-malt beer.
  • * May not sum up to total due to rounding.

Comments

  • Global production amounted to 191 million kiloliters. With a 0.5% decrease year-on-year, it recorded a decline for the first time in 30 years, affected by negative growth in the top countries.
  • China (down 3.1% year-on-year) marked its 13th consecutive year as the top producing country. Its production recorded negative growth for the first time in 2 years, affected by poor weather conditions in the summer.
  • Production in the United States (up 0.2% year-on-year) increased slightly due to an increase in the popularity of craft beer mainly among the younger generations. According to the Brewers Association of the United States, the volume share of craft beer of the beer market in 2014 was 11%, reaching double-digits for the first time.
  • Brazil (up 5.0% year-on-year) saw an increase due to the hosting of the Soccer World Cup.
  • Russia (down 8.2% year-on-year) saw a substantial decrease from 2013, affected by the economic decline and tax increases.
  • Japan (down 1.1% year-on-year) has ranked in 7th for 12 years in a row, but its production declined in 2014, affected by tax increases and poor weather conditions in the summer which is the highest beer consuming season.

Table 3: Global Beer Production by Country in 2014 in Comparison to 2004

  • * Production volume in Japan combines beer, low-malt beer, and no-malt beer.

Comments

  • In comparison to a decade ago, the global beer production of 2014 increased by about 37.26 million kiloliters (with a 24.2% increase). In terms of the difference in production volume, China saw the most increase of about 17.18 million kiloliters, followed by Brazil (about 5.42 million kiloliters) and Vietnam (about 2.72 million kiloliters).