Beer
Veltins Brewery is selling more beer than ever before
Veltins is one of the three strongest beer brands in Germany. The gap to leader Krombacher is still clear, but the brewery from the Sauerland is catching up.
Against the declining market trend, the Veltins brewery sold significantly more beer and reached a company high. The company from the Sauerland in Meschede announced that output – i.e. the production volume – increased by 3.1 percent to around 3.36 million hectoliters of beer last year.
“The Veltins brewery has never brewed as much beer as it will in 2024,” said company boss Volker Kuhl. The company’s sales with its 737 employees rose by 4.1 percent to 459 million euros. As usual, the family business did not provide any information about profits.
Veltins justified the positive development with, among other things, a “stable brand mix”. While traditional brands remain in high demand, new brands also sold well. This includes a light lager bottled beer that is also intended for export. Veltins’ export share has so far been just under five percent of production volume.
No price increase for now
Veltins last raised prices in 2023. There are currently no plans for a further price increase, said manager Kuhl. The fact that sales increased more than production volume last year was due to changes in consumption: people bought more Veltins products, which were slightly more expensive than other, cheaper products from the brewery.
Competitor Krombacher had previously reported a drop in emissions of 1.1 percent to 5.675 million hectoliters, i.e. 567.5 million liters. Things were also mediocre at other breweries; according to experts, Germany’s beer industry overall probably suffered a similar loss as Krombacher. Veltins, on the other hand, was able to escape this negative development and make significant gains. Last year’s European Football Championship was more of a flop for the breweries, as it did not boost beer sales as hoped. Things had been different in the past, for example at the 2006 World Cup.
Alongside Veltins and Krombacher, Bitburger is one of the three best-selling beer brands in Germany. Among the various types of beer, Pils is by far number 1 in Germany; according to an industry analysis, this type accounted for almost half of the total market in 2024 (48.1 percent). Light beers follow in second place with 10.6 percent and non-alcoholic beers in third place with 8.9 percent. There are also mixed drinks, wheat, specialties, lagers and other beers.
dpa
Source: Stern
