Beer is like Stockholm Syndrome: you dislike it until you start liking it and get addicted to it. And while world over, beer is a popular alcoholic drink, Indians drink it less than the rest of Asia. The reason is a little whiskey and a lot of restrictions. According to a research report by BMI, India’s consumption of beer per capita is lowest in Asia and the biggest reason is a lot of restriction both legal and cultural and a little preference for whiskey.
Beer consumption is not widespread and advertising can pose a number of regulatory challenges. It is difficult to advertise beer through conventional channels such as television. Most Indians do not consume alcohol and those who do generally prefer spirits.
India has one of the lowest levels of beer consumption per capita in Asia, PTI reported quoting the BMI research report. It said that the low consumption of beer is due to reasons like conservative attitudes, licensing regulations, restrictions on the sale of alcohol in certain states and a preference for locally produced spirits such as whiskey.
But the landscape is changing, the research reported noted, and due to the cultural shift, change in lifestyle and more disposable income. Even as the current situation is a bit conservative, the Research report said it holds a favorable outlook for the beer market in the country.
“We forecast beer sales in volume terms to grow by an average of 6.9 per cent annually between 2018 and 2022, reaching 6.5 billion litres in total by the end of this period, up from an estimated 4.7 billion litres in 2017,” it said.
While a lot of states imposing higher duties or restrictions on alcohol was becoming detrimental to the beer market but cheaper locally produced products and emerging craft beer culture will be balancing the risks.
