Iceland: Alcohol consumption down 4% in 2023

According to the latest report from Statistics Iceland, alcohol consumption in Iceland decreased by 4% between 2022 and 2023, Iceland Review reported on October 15.

The data measures the per capita consumption of pure alcohol for those aged 15 and older. In 2023, the total consumption was 7.7 litres, down from 8.1 in 2022.

Broken down by type of alcohol, the most popular form remains beer, at 4.2 litres. This was followed by wine, at 2.2 litres, and spirits, at 1.3.

Consumption rates for different types of alcohol have varied greatly over the past 40-plus years, due in no small part to beer being made legal in 1989.

Before 1989, spirits were by far the most popular alcohol delivery system, surpassing even wine by a margin of 3.5 to 1.1. This is not due solely to people drinking spirits directly; for a time, a popular drink in Iceland was bjórlíki, wherein a shot of spirits is added a half litre of non-alcoholic "near beer".

Interestingly, beer consumption did not skyrocket with its legalisation. Instead, per capita consumption increased very slowly, from 1.9 litres per capita in 1989 to a peak of 4.0 in 2007. After a brief dip following this year, it went back up to 4.0 and over in 2014, where it has remained since. At the same time, wine has seen a somewhat steady rise in popularity since 1989, while the consumption of spirits has declined from a peak of 3.5 in 1988.