World Beer Consumption Essay Example for Free

World Beer Consumption Essay Approximately, 100 billion liters of beer are consumed around the world every year (Olfir, 2007). The worldwide growth rate of beer consumption has been recorded for the past 19 years (Kirin Holdings, 2005). This, however, is not to say that the beer consumption around the world is alike. The alcoholic beverage consumption levels around the world and the rates at which these increase vary from one country to another. For example, in India the annual consumption of beer is . 5 litters per capita (Gupta, 2007), where as in Czech Republic, the consumption of beer is 156. 9 liters per capita per year (Olfir, 2007). There are many factors that contribute to the difference in beer consumption levels amongst different countries. Some of these factors include the stability of the country’s economy, laws and regulations, religion, and culture. Economy I believe that the economy of a nation plays an important role in the levels of beer consumption in different parts of the world. The demand for beer is rapidly increasing in nations whose economy is on the rise. Some of these economies include Asia, particularly China, Eastern Europe, and Africa (Access Capital, 2010). For example, In 1966 China only consumed about half a bottle of beer. As the average per capita income has increased so has the consumption of beer, reaching 103 beers per person in 2007 (Appebaum, 2011). Laws and Regulations Laws and regulations on alcoholic beverages also have an effect on the consumption of beer. In most cases, if not all, laws have the ability to hinder the increasing rates consumption of alcohol. For example, the principle of prohibition is intensely recommended by the Indian constitution and Indian law prohibits the advertisement of alcoholic beverage (Ranganathan, 1994). This is one of the reasons why their per capita consumption is so low. On the other hand, legislation may cause for consumption levels to increase. For example, in Czech Republic, Ireland and Germany, the top three nations with the highest beer consumption (Olfir, 2007), the minimum legal drinking age is between 16 and 18 years of age. Because people can start drinking at an earlier age legally, the amount of drinkers is higher in these countries. Religion As previously mentioned, India consumes approximately . 5 litters per capita on a yearly basis. Although this number might seem insignificant compared to other countries, such as Czech Republic, it is important to note that the consumption over the last few years has increased at a rate of about seven percent annually (Gupta, 2007). An important factor to such low rate is religion (Ranganathan, 1994). As Shanthi Ranganathan mentions in the article, The Most Sensible Thing is Not to Drink, Hinduism, the largest religion followed in India, the consumption of alcohol is known as one of the five heinous crimes. It is compared to adultery and murder (Ranganathan, 1994), making it a horrible act. Christianity, on the contrary, has more open-minded beliefs in regards with the consumption of alcohol (Wig, 1994). Culture Another country that can be used as an example to explain the difference in beer consumption levels among different countries is France whose beer consumption level per capita is 35. 5 liters per year (Lansdell, 2006). Compared to other countries, France may be considered to have a lower level of alcoholic consumption. The biggest contributor to this countries consumption level, I believe, is the culture of the country. When drinking, in most cases, French prefer wine instead of beer and they take their time to consume their beverages, unlike Americans, who are always in a rush to do everything. Worldwide Brewers and Increased Beer Consumption Each year, 2. 5 million people worldwide die do to alcohol or beer consumption. Alcohol is attributed to being the third greatest factor for diseases (W. , 2011). I believe that due to the great risk factor that comes with the consumption of alcohol, worldwide brewers should not have the ability to grow at such a fast rate all around the world. Although the industry could possibly help the economic stability of a country, I believe it does a greater harm to the different nations. I believe that one possibly solution that would allow the beer industry to prosper without causing much harm, is if as they enter a nation to introduce their product, they help create programs that educate people on the consumption of alcohol. I believe that if people are educated on the subject matter and know the consequences of drinking this product, they will continue to consume the beverage but being more responsible. This, in my opinion, will not have a negative affect on the beer industry. Another way that a nation can prevent the consequences of alcohol consumption caused by worldwide brewers is by creating greater taxation or other barriers that would hinder the production and selling of beer in their nation. This scenario, however, might be one that the beer industry might one to avoid. Unlike my first suggestion, this would have a greater negative impact on the industry. Such situation would lower sales in the given country affecting the revenue of the company. I also believe that although the rate of alcohol consumption in many developing countries is increasing, these rates will begin to slow down. Although, as mentioned earlier, economy prosperity may help increase the levels of alcohol consumption, it is also true that after a certain level of prosperity, people tend to consider quality when purchasing a product. For example, Ethiopians may start consuming low-end beer, however, as their financial stability begins to prosper they might continue to upgrade until they convert to wine-drinkers. Works Cited W. , C. (2011, February 12). W. H. O. Report on Worldwide Alcohol Abuse. Retrieved October 03, 2011, from lifering. org: http://lifering. org/2011/02/w-h-o-report-on-worldwide-alcohol-abuse/ Wig, N. (1994, September). Alcohol in the Third World. (D. p. Knight, Ed. ) Retrieved September 30, 2009, from unhooked. com: http://www. unhooked. com/sep/thirdworl. html Access Capital. (2010). Investing in Ethiopia. Access Capital. Appebaum, B. (2011, April 25). Beer Drinking and What It Says About China’s Economy. Retrieved October 03, 2011, from Economix: http://economix. blogs. nytimes. com/2011/04/23/beer-drinking-and-what-it-says-about-chinas-economy/ Gupta, V. K. (2007, February 15). The Beer industry in India in context of Consumer Buying Behavior. Retrieved October 3, 2011, from inidiamaba. com: http://www. indianmba. com/Faculty_Column/FC519/fc519. html Kirin Holdings. (2005, December 15). Kirin Research Institute of Drinking and Lifestyle . Retrieved Ocotober 3, 2011, from Kirin Holdings: http://www. kirinholdings. co.jp/english/ir/news_release051215_1. html Lansdell, G. (2006). Top 10: Drinking Countries. Retrieved October 03, 2011, from askmen. com: http://www. askmen. com/feeder/askmenRSS_article_print_2006. php? ID=949422 Olfir, E. (2007). Volume of World Beer Consumption. (G. Elert, Editor) Retrieved 0ctober 3, 2011, from http://hypertextbook. com: http://hypertextbook. com/facts/2001/JohnnyAlicea. shtml Ranganathan, S. (1994, September ). Alcohol in the Third World. Retrieved September 30, 2009, from unhooked. com: http://www. unhooked. com/sep/thirdworl. html.