Between January and August 2007 sales of beer in Poland improved by as much as 12% year on year, with a volume of 25.39 million hl, according to the Association of Beer Industry Employers (ZPPP).

This is an impressive result, and nothing comparable has been seen for the last 10 years, according to Marcin Pirog, the new head of ZPPP and president of Carlsberg. He added that the boost in sales was prompted by brewers’ investments in production capacities, infrastructure and beer quality, along with improved sales in the HoReCa arena and changes in consumer preferences. Mr Pirog said that for the last two or three years breweries have observed a trend toward drinking beers with a lower alcohol content, and this contributes to higher volume sales. Furthermore, consumption by tourists in large cities also contributes to overall sales.

However, despite the improvement in sales, the industry faces an increase in the prices of raw materials: since the beginning of 2007 the price of malt has risen by 40%, and that of hops by 100%. There are also problems with supplies of aluminium for the production of cans. This is why the price of beer may increase, but, according to Mr Pirog, this will not be drastic because of the intense competition on the market. For these reasons the full year beer sales growth rate should be slightly lower, 10%, but still higher than the 2006 rate of 7.2%.