In January, vegans tend to hog the limelight – but what about those abstaining from alcohol for a month?
Demand for low- and no-alcohol beer and cider was at its strongest ever during ‘Dry January’, according to supermarket Tesco. Sales surged nearly 30% compared to the same period last year. Sparkling wine, including ‘Nozeco’, also proved popular with sales up 40%.
This represented a “reversal” on 2021 when wine and spirit alternatives proved most popular, said Tesco buyer Marianne Aitken.
Figures are expected soon on sales across hospitality – though some expect the sector to have missed the opportunity presented by the campaign.
At the start of January, the British Beer & Pub Association predicted that 7.8 million pints of low- and no-alcohol beer would be sold during the month – most of it in supermarkets and shops.
“If more of the 7.8 million pints of non-alcoholic beer we expect to be consumed this January are sold in pubs, it will be a big boost for our sector,” said BBPA chief executive Emma McClarkin last month.
