The demand for sober-curious drinks is through the roof. In short, breweries are more urgently than ever reevaluating their business operations to address these shifting consumer demands. In the UK, consumers drank more than 120 million pints of no and low alcohol beers in 2023. Industry specialists estimate that this sector could be worth £800 million by 2028. The average consumer is asking themselves if going alcohol-free is really worth the premium price. This article explores the brewing processes of alcohol-free beers. Most importantly, it digs into the economic factors that can explain why these drinks aren’t more expensive than their alcoholic counterparts.
Chris Butcher, a brewmaster with Shiny Brewery, walked us through the ingredients and brewing process that go into creating alcohol-free beer. He explained that at his brewery, they brew with water, malted barley, wheat, hops and yeast in a three-week brewing cycle. Butcher highlighted how making alcohol-free beers involves the same level of time investment and quality of ingredients as traditional beers.
To that end, Dom Driscoll from Thornbridge Brewery has cultivated a pretty radical approach to brewing alcohol-free beer. He increases hops to preserve flavor while decreasing malted barley, which lowers the alcohol content. Driscoll noted, “Over the last few years we have developed our own method to create our low alcohol beer, everybody does it in a different way.”
Brewing quality alcohol-free beer is no easy feat. Ben Wood, another brewer, remarked on the complexities involved: “It costs more to produce an alcohol-free beer because it involves more processes, more technology, more time and more ingredients.” In fact, some alcohol-free pints are brewed with the same grains, hops, yeast, and fermentation as their full-strength counterparts.
No matter how complex an industry’s production might be, consumers are eager to complain about cost. According to the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA), brewers only make an average of two pence profit per bottle of alcohol-free beer. Local pubs take home just 12 pence per pint. For comparison, a pint of 4.5% Shiny Brewery lager wholesales at £2.10. This price enables the brewer to make a profit of 22 pence. A full-strength 0.3% alcohol-free pint wholesales for £1.90. As a result, they end up with a 30 pence higher profit margin due to reduced tax and no duty expenses.
Chris Butcher elaborated on the financial aspects of producing alcohol-free beer. “The only saving between the two would be the beer duty costs, which range between 30-40p a can. The additional cost of processing alcohol-free products will take up more than half of this.”
Consumer sentiment regarding pricing varies. Steve Kirk voiced frustration over pricing similarities between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks: “The fact we have to sell it at the same price as regular alcohol is not a great incentive for people to choose an alcohol-free alternative.” He added that until prices came down, he would restrict his buying.
“I hope people choose to drink things because they taste good and they have choice as that is a good thing,” Butcher added. “Not because they are simply cheaper without the alcohol.” Clare Wragg shared her perspective on pricing: “I can understand why it is priced the same as regular alcohol drinks because of the process to make it. The bottom line is that people have to earn a living. I wish it were not so expensive, but it has a wonderful flavor! Wragg highlighted that as long as consumers like the taste, they may be willing to pay a similar amount.
Amit Gill expressed concern about pricing, stating that the cost would discourage him from purchasing alcohol-free beer: “If it was cheaper to buy, then we would of course reduce the sale price.”
Breweries are caught in difficult tightrope walk. On one hand, they have to not only control production costs, but cater to the consumer’s demand for higher quality at lower prices. The price point of alcohol-free beverages remains a topic of discussion among both producers and consumers as they weigh flavor against cost.