UK: Beer is the most popular alcoholic drink in the UK, accounting for 48% of total spending on alcoholic drinks in 2003. The UK beer market was worth 18.85bn pounds sterling in 2003, having benefited from both a hot summer and generally favourable economic conditions, PRNewswire commented the report of Research and Markets on October 12. Despite media impressions of a binge-drinking culture, the UK's per capita consumption of beer is not unduly high, and the total volume of consumption is fairly stable over the long term. However, the trend away from standard-strength beers towards the more expensive premium lagers has continued, helping the market to grow in value.

Pricing competition has intensified in the take-home channel for beer, whereas public houses (commonly known as `pubs') and nightclubs have been able to increase prices regularly. At one time, the majority of pubs were owned by brewers, but government restrictions on this 'tie' produced a situation where, by the end of 2003, none of the national brewers was a significant pub owner.

Scottish & Newcastle PLC, the last brewer to sell its tied pub estate (in 2003), was the market leader by value. It is followed by three foreign owners -- Interbrew of Belgium, Coors of the US and Carlsberg of Denmark -- and these four companies account for 80% of the UK beer market between them. Concentration is increasing not only by brewer but also by brand, with giant brands such as Stella Artois (Interbrew) and Carling (Coors) gaining market share at the expense of less well-known brands. Despite globalisation trends in both directions -- the UK's Scottish & Newcastle is now a major multinational -- the smaller regional brewers remain important as guardians of traditional brewing heritage. Most young people start by drinking lager but their tastes often mature towards the dark beers such as stout (led by Guinness) and cask ales such as London Pride and Marston's Pedigree. The maturity of the market means that future changes are unlikely to be dramatic, although a new licensing regime for retailing alcohol -- due to begin in 2005 -- could influence drinking patterns significantly. On the supply side, governments are unlikely to allow further mergers to take place between the major players.

E-malt.com, the global information source for the brewing and malting industry professionals. The bi-weekly E-malt.com Newsletters feature latest industry news, statistics in graphs and tables, world barley and malt prices, and other relevant information. Click here to get full access to E-malt.com. If you are a Castle Malting client, you can get free access to E-malt.com website and publications. Contact us for more information at marketing@castlemalting.com .