Overall, alcohol volumes released for UK consumption in the year to January 2011 were down by 1 per cent compared to the previous year. The most significant dip was seen in on trade beer sales, which fell by 4.8 per cent.
GMB, the union for tied pub tenants, said the figures reveal “an unsteady and uneven recovery underway in the seasonally adjusted monthly volumes of some type of alcoholic drinks released for consumption in the UK while volumes are still well below pre-recession levels for all types of alcoholic drinks except cider.”
Wine: The HMRC figures show that the volume of wine released for UK consumption in the year to January 2011 was down by 0.7 per cent on the volume for the year to December 2010, and 0.4 per cent down on the volume for the year to January 2010.
Cider: Cider volumes for the same period were up by 0.7 per cent on the volume for the year to December 2010 and up by 0.1 per cent for the year to January 2010.
Spirits: In the year to January 2011 the volume of spirits released for UK consumption was down by 2 per cent on the volume for the year to December 2010 and up 2.2 per cent on the volume for the year to January 2010.
Beer: The volume of beer released for UK consumption was down by 0.1 per cent on the compared to December 2010 and was 2 per cent down on the volume for the year to January 2010.
Beer for on trade: Beer consumption in the on trade was down by 0.1 per cent compared to December 2010 and was 4.8 per cent down on the figure for the year to January 2010. Sales of beer in the on trade are down 38.8 per cent on the peak levels in 2002, said GMB.
Beer for off trade: In the year to January 2011 the volume of beer released for UK consumption in the off trade was also down by 0.1 per cent on the volume for the year to December 2010 and was 1.3 per cent up on the volume for the year to January 2010.
Pubs suffer
Paul Maloney, GMB national officer for tied tenants said: "Beer sales in the ‘on trade’ continue to fall month by month. They have fallen off a cliff – down 38.9 per cent from peak levels – as pubs are priced out of the market and close as a result of rents being too high.”
“In value terms alcohol consumption is still well down on the peak level of £43.4bn sold in the UK in 2007,” said GMB.
“Beer had a market share of 41.6 per cent of all sales in 2009 and volumes are still declining. Spirits had a market share of 20.2 per cent of sales in 2009. Volumes of wines and ciders, with a market share of 38.2 per cent of sales in 2009, are growing. In 2009 total alcohol sales in the UK had fallen in value by 4.6 per cent to £41.4bn.”