Wed 4th May 2016 - BBPA – UK beer sales show encouraging signs of stability BBPA – UK beer sales show encouraging signs of stability: UK beer sales have shown encouraging signs of stability, according to the latest figures from the British Beer & Pub Association’s (BBPA) quarterly Beer Barometer. The data showed sales in the first quarter of 2016 were down 1% on the same quarter in 2015. The fall was the smallest quarter one drop since 2008, giving “further signs of more stability in the market”, following years of decline accompanied by sharp rises in the tax on beer, which increased by 42% from 2008 to 2013. Three successive beer duty cuts since 2013, and a freeze in this year’s Budget, have helped to build confidence in the industry said BBPA chief executive Brigid Simmonds. The barometer showed greater sales stability was particularly noticeable in the on-trade, which fared relatively better than the off-trade, with a drop of 0.2% on quarter one 2015, whilst off-trade sales fell by 1.8%. The on-trade drop in volumes was the smallest decline in sales seen in quarter one since 2002. The BBPA said increased confidence in the sector was being spurred by innovation and investment, and through campaigns such as “There’s a Beer for That” by Britain’s Beer Alliance – a cross-industry group of brewers, pub companies and beer organisations working together to support a high-profile marketing campaign for the beer category as a whole. Simmonds said: “Beer sales are certainly doing better overall, and there are good prospects for quarter two, with Euro 2016 and the Queen’s 90th birthday celebrations a key draw for pubs. To avoid any return to the sharp declines in sales of recent years, we will need continued focus from the government on the tax burden, not just on beer, but also on pubs, through a fairer business rates regime and other burdens on small business.”