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13-01-2015, 07:33
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Time for part two of my statistics feast. Loads more tables. And ones that tell us much about the changes in Europe’s brewing industry over the last few decades.
These figures are all connected with breweries: number of breweries, average output per brewery, average output per employee.
The number of breweries per country varied enormously. We’re still back when half of Europe’s breweries were in West Germany.
“Table III gives the number of working breweries in each of the EEC countries in 1974. The enormous differences influence not only the methods of beer production (i.e. technology) but also the costs of production and distribution, as we will see later.
Table III also illustrates one of the main problems in West Germany. In 1974 the EEC countries had 2,183 production breweries (not companies) which, together, were producing 226,409 million hl per year. The average production per brewery was 103,700 hl. In Ireland, the Netherlands and Great Britain the average production per brewery ranged between 414,700 hl and 869,300 hl but in the much smaller West German breweries the average production was 56,700 hl. Indeed we have today, in West Germany, 1,472 breweries with production less than 120,000 hl/year and only 164 plants with more than that, including only 38 breweries with more than 500,000 hl per year (305,550 brl/year). If you remember that the average production of the 152 breweries in Great Britain is 414,700 hl/year, you can imagine how different the technical and technological problems are in the brewing industry in West Germany.”
Journal of the Institute of Brewing, Volume 83, Issue 1, March-April 1977, page 72.
Obviously, the countries with fewer breweries generally had greater output per brewery. Germany, with equivalently far more breweries than anyone else, came bottom. Ireland, with only a handful left, came top.
Here’s the table:
TABLE III. No. of Breweries and Average Beer Production per Brewery in 1974 (x 1,000 hl).
No. of breweries
Production per brewery
Denmark
50
168.1
Eire
7
869.3
Great Britain
152
414.7
Italy
37
216.6
Netherlands
23
506.2
Luxemburg
7
98.9
Belgium
185
75.7
France
86
252.5
West Germany
1,636
56.7
Total
2,183
Average 103.7
For comparison purposes, here are some recent figures for the same countries:
Number of Active Breweries 2008 - 2013
Country
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
% change 2008 - 2013
Denmark*
N/A
N/A
N/A
150
150
150
N/A
Ireland*
26
26
26
26
26
30
15.38%
United Kingdom
725
745
828
948
1,300
1,490
105.52%
Italy
220
256
308
350
421
509
131.36%
Netherlands*
72
N/A
N/A
125
165
185
156.94%
Luxembourg
5
6
7
7
7
7
40.00%
Belgium*
135
127
135
123
150
160
18.52%
France
132
322
387
442
503
580
339.39%
Germany
1,328
1,331
1,333
1,347
1,340
1,349
1.58%
total
2,643
2,813
3,024
3,518
4,062
4,460
68.75%
* Number of microbreweries unknown
Source:
"Beer Statistics 2014 edition", Brewers of Europe, 2014, page 21.
In the last few years there’s been a remarkable surge in brewery numbers in many European countries. France has seen the biggest growth, but the UK, Italy and The Netherlands have seen the number of breweries double in 5 years. And there’s another very significant figure in there. For the first time I can remember Germany is no longer the country with the most breweries, having been passed by the UK in 2013.
Nailing the two tables together in my inimitable way is very revealing:
Number of Active Breweries 2008 - 2013
Country
1974
2013
% change 2008 - 2013
Denmark
50
150
200.00%
Ireland
7
30
328.57%
United Kingdom
152
1,490
880.26%
Italy
37
509
1275.68%
Netherlands
23
185
704.35%
Luxembourg
7
7
0.00%
Belgium
185
160
-13.51%
France
86
580
574.42%
Germany
1,636
1,349
-17.54%
total
2,183
4,460
104.31%
Sources:
Journal of the Institute of Brewing, Volume 83, Issue 1, March-April 1977, page 72.
"Beer Statistics 2014 edition", Brewers of Europe, 2014, page 21.
Overall the number of breweries in the nine countries has more than doubled, but the growth has been very uneven. In two countries – Belgium and Germany – the number has fallen. Factoring in the 200 or so DDR breweries would make the German numbers look even worse.
Comparing the output per brewery in 1974 and 2013 is very illuminating. And I’m sure it’s a development no-one in the industry would have foreseen in the 1970’s.
Production per brewery in 2013 (1,000 hl)
Country
output 2013
No. of breweries 2013
Production per brewery 2013
Production per brewery 1974
% change 1974 - 2013
Denmark
6,166
150
41.11
168.1
-75.55%
Ireland
8,008
30
266.93
869.3
-69.29%
United Kingdom
41,956
1,490
28.16
414.7
-93.21%
Italy
13,256
509
26.04
216.6
-87.98%
Netherlands
23,636
185
127.76
506.2
-74.76%
Luxembourg
281
7
40.14
98.9
-59.41%
Belgium
18,069
160
112.93
75.7
49.18%
France
15,491
580
26.71
252.5
-89.42%
Germany
94,365
1,349
69.95
56.7
23.37%
total/ average
221,228
4,460
49.60
103.7
-52.17%
Sources:
Journal of the Institute of Brewing, Volume 83, Issue 1, March-April 1977, page 72.
"Beer Statistics 2014 edition", Brewers of Europe, 2014, pages 7 and 21.
Average output per brewery has fallen everywhere except Germany and Belgium. Which is logical enough, as they’re the two countries with no significant increase in the number of breweries. The UK has gone from having one of the highest averages to third lowest.
Of course, this doesn’t mean there are no longer large breweries. Just that the industry has become fragmented, with businesses on very different scales. On the one hand, a few large industrial breweries churning out millions of hectolitres and on the other loads of small outfits making just a few thousand.
It’s really brought home to me just how much the beer scene has changed since I started drinking. Then a continued decline in number of breweries seemed inevitable. Even the most optimistic drinker wouldn’t have dreamed that the UK could have more than 1,000 breweries again.
I’ve still not completely cleared out this statistic mine. More to come.
More... (http://barclayperkins.blogspot.com/2015/01/german-brewing-in-1970s-more-statistics.html)
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8YqruET4MWM/VK-G60sIWtI/AAAAAAAAWXg/UIlIFUvtXVs/s1600/ARNS07.JPG (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8YqruET4MWM/VK-G60sIWtI/AAAAAAAAWXg/UIlIFUvtXVs/s1600/ARNS07.JPG)
Time for part two of my statistics feast. Loads more tables. And ones that tell us much about the changes in Europe’s brewing industry over the last few decades.
These figures are all connected with breweries: number of breweries, average output per brewery, average output per employee.
The number of breweries per country varied enormously. We’re still back when half of Europe’s breweries were in West Germany.
“Table III gives the number of working breweries in each of the EEC countries in 1974. The enormous differences influence not only the methods of beer production (i.e. technology) but also the costs of production and distribution, as we will see later.
Table III also illustrates one of the main problems in West Germany. In 1974 the EEC countries had 2,183 production breweries (not companies) which, together, were producing 226,409 million hl per year. The average production per brewery was 103,700 hl. In Ireland, the Netherlands and Great Britain the average production per brewery ranged between 414,700 hl and 869,300 hl but in the much smaller West German breweries the average production was 56,700 hl. Indeed we have today, in West Germany, 1,472 breweries with production less than 120,000 hl/year and only 164 plants with more than that, including only 38 breweries with more than 500,000 hl per year (305,550 brl/year). If you remember that the average production of the 152 breweries in Great Britain is 414,700 hl/year, you can imagine how different the technical and technological problems are in the brewing industry in West Germany.”
Journal of the Institute of Brewing, Volume 83, Issue 1, March-April 1977, page 72.
Obviously, the countries with fewer breweries generally had greater output per brewery. Germany, with equivalently far more breweries than anyone else, came bottom. Ireland, with only a handful left, came top.
Here’s the table:
TABLE III. No. of Breweries and Average Beer Production per Brewery in 1974 (x 1,000 hl).
No. of breweries
Production per brewery
Denmark
50
168.1
Eire
7
869.3
Great Britain
152
414.7
Italy
37
216.6
Netherlands
23
506.2
Luxemburg
7
98.9
Belgium
185
75.7
France
86
252.5
West Germany
1,636
56.7
Total
2,183
Average 103.7
For comparison purposes, here are some recent figures for the same countries:
Number of Active Breweries 2008 - 2013
Country
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
% change 2008 - 2013
Denmark*
N/A
N/A
N/A
150
150
150
N/A
Ireland*
26
26
26
26
26
30
15.38%
United Kingdom
725
745
828
948
1,300
1,490
105.52%
Italy
220
256
308
350
421
509
131.36%
Netherlands*
72
N/A
N/A
125
165
185
156.94%
Luxembourg
5
6
7
7
7
7
40.00%
Belgium*
135
127
135
123
150
160
18.52%
France
132
322
387
442
503
580
339.39%
Germany
1,328
1,331
1,333
1,347
1,340
1,349
1.58%
total
2,643
2,813
3,024
3,518
4,062
4,460
68.75%
* Number of microbreweries unknown
Source:
"Beer Statistics 2014 edition", Brewers of Europe, 2014, page 21.
In the last few years there’s been a remarkable surge in brewery numbers in many European countries. France has seen the biggest growth, but the UK, Italy and The Netherlands have seen the number of breweries double in 5 years. And there’s another very significant figure in there. For the first time I can remember Germany is no longer the country with the most breweries, having been passed by the UK in 2013.
Nailing the two tables together in my inimitable way is very revealing:
Number of Active Breweries 2008 - 2013
Country
1974
2013
% change 2008 - 2013
Denmark
50
150
200.00%
Ireland
7
30
328.57%
United Kingdom
152
1,490
880.26%
Italy
37
509
1275.68%
Netherlands
23
185
704.35%
Luxembourg
7
7
0.00%
Belgium
185
160
-13.51%
France
86
580
574.42%
Germany
1,636
1,349
-17.54%
total
2,183
4,460
104.31%
Sources:
Journal of the Institute of Brewing, Volume 83, Issue 1, March-April 1977, page 72.
"Beer Statistics 2014 edition", Brewers of Europe, 2014, page 21.
Overall the number of breweries in the nine countries has more than doubled, but the growth has been very uneven. In two countries – Belgium and Germany – the number has fallen. Factoring in the 200 or so DDR breweries would make the German numbers look even worse.
Comparing the output per brewery in 1974 and 2013 is very illuminating. And I’m sure it’s a development no-one in the industry would have foreseen in the 1970’s.
Production per brewery in 2013 (1,000 hl)
Country
output 2013
No. of breweries 2013
Production per brewery 2013
Production per brewery 1974
% change 1974 - 2013
Denmark
6,166
150
41.11
168.1
-75.55%
Ireland
8,008
30
266.93
869.3
-69.29%
United Kingdom
41,956
1,490
28.16
414.7
-93.21%
Italy
13,256
509
26.04
216.6
-87.98%
Netherlands
23,636
185
127.76
506.2
-74.76%
Luxembourg
281
7
40.14
98.9
-59.41%
Belgium
18,069
160
112.93
75.7
49.18%
France
15,491
580
26.71
252.5
-89.42%
Germany
94,365
1,349
69.95
56.7
23.37%
total/ average
221,228
4,460
49.60
103.7
-52.17%
Sources:
Journal of the Institute of Brewing, Volume 83, Issue 1, March-April 1977, page 72.
"Beer Statistics 2014 edition", Brewers of Europe, 2014, pages 7 and 21.
Average output per brewery has fallen everywhere except Germany and Belgium. Which is logical enough, as they’re the two countries with no significant increase in the number of breweries. The UK has gone from having one of the highest averages to third lowest.
Of course, this doesn’t mean there are no longer large breweries. Just that the industry has become fragmented, with businesses on very different scales. On the one hand, a few large industrial breweries churning out millions of hectolitres and on the other loads of small outfits making just a few thousand.
It’s really brought home to me just how much the beer scene has changed since I started drinking. Then a continued decline in number of breweries seemed inevitable. Even the most optimistic drinker wouldn’t have dreamed that the UK could have more than 1,000 breweries again.
I’ve still not completely cleared out this statistic mine. More to come.
More... (http://barclayperkins.blogspot.com/2015/01/german-brewing-in-1970s-more-statistics.html)