Jobs brewing as new report shows beer industry employment up 8%
Print11 August 2015
Direct employment in the beer industry is up 8%, due to ongoing investment by the sector in Ireland and new product development. This is according to the latest Annual Market Report released by the Irish Brewers Association (IBA), which shows Irish beer industry exports are worth €228 million.
While production of beer in Ireland for export fell slightly between 2013 and 2014 due to the international economic environment, the beer industry remains a major success story. Over 700 million litres of beer were produced in 2014. In Ireland 43% of beer produced is exported and beer accounts for 19% of all beverage exports. The craft beer sector continues to be a success story, making up an estimated 1.2% of the market, with 40% of microbreweries exporting.
In the new report, the IBA has called for the government to support the sector by reducing the excise burden. Currently, Ireland has the third highest excise on beer in the EU and it is 11.4 times higher than the excise rate on beer in Germany.
Jonathan McDade, head of the IBA said: “The Irish beer industry is experiencing a period of exciting development, with new breweries opening across the country and established breweries expanding and investing in new products and facilities.”
McDaid highlighted the fact that in the UK, 26,000 jobs have been created since 2013, due to a cut in beer duty* and said, “the potential for Ireland’s brewing industry is massive if excise is reversed”.
In terms of consumption trends, the report shows that beer remains Ireland’s most popular alcoholic drink, with a 47% market share. Overall, consumption of beer was up 4% between 2013 and 2014. The report looks at consumption across the various types of beer – larger, stout and ale. It shows a higher percentage of consumers are now drinking stout (up from 29.2% – 31.1%) and ale (up from 5.4% – 5.9%).
*(Source: http://www.camra.org.uk/documents/10180/18996/Cebr+Report+23.2.15.pdf)
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