Belgium is known as a land of beer but the country produced 99 million litres less of the amber liquid in 2023 than in 2022, according to a report published on Friday by Eurostat.
Across the European Union (EU), beer production fell by 5%. Belgium made 2.047 billion litres in 2023 – 99 million litres less than the 2.146 billion litres brewed in 2022. In terms of pintjes (25 cl glasses), this amounts to 396 million fewer than the year previous.
Germany remained the largest beer producer in the EU, brewing 7.2 billion litres in 2023 – the same as in 2022. Spain (4 billion litres), Poland (3.5), the Netherlands (2.4), and finally Belgium with just over 2 billion litres, made the top five.
The Netherlands exported the largest volume – 1.8 billion litres in 2023, equal to previous years. In 2022, Belgium was the second-biggest exporter with 1.6 billion litres shipped but in 2023 it was equal with Germany (1.4 billion litres).
France continues to be the largest beer importer in the EU (0.9 billion litres). The Europeans still hold sway in non-EU imports, with Britain importing 0.8 billion litres of European beer.
Non-alcoholic beer production saw a significant 13.5% surge, accounting for a total of 1.8 billion litres. Germany is the largest non-alcoholic beer producer, although no data was available for Belgium.
