The GERMAN Brewers Association warned today of the threat of a wave of bankruptcies in the sector due to the rapid rise in energy prices weighing on production.

The position of the brewing industry has deteriorated dramatically due to the energy crisis, the association's director Holger Eichele said today in Berlin.

“If the federal and state governments do not quickly and effectively cap gas and electricity prices, many companies will not make it to the new year,” Eichele warned.

“The year 2022 will be among the saddest in our history”

He recalled that during the covid pandemic the brewing sector recorded a dramatic drop in sales.

Although beer sales have stabilized recently, companies are now suffering major financial losses due to energy costs, the head of the beer producers' association pointed out.

“The year 2022 will be among the saddest in our history, and unfortunately the forecast for 2023 is also bleak,” Eichele said at an event organized in cooperation with the Association of Certified Beer Sommeliers.

At the end of 2021, there were 1,512 breweries in Germany, 40 fewer than at the end of the pre-pandemic year 2019.

Source: index.hr