Africa bucks trend of falling global beer output

Global beer production fell 0.7% in 2025 to just under 1.9 billion hectolitres, according to data from major hop supplier BarthHaas. However, Africa bucked the trend with a 2.6% increase in output, reaching 166.7 million hectolitres, driven largely by production in South Africa. All other major regions—Europe, the Americas, Asia, and Oceania—saw declines. In Europe, output fell 1.6%, with Germany's production dropping over 5%. Asia's output declined 1.2% to 586.7 million hectolitres, as higher production in India was offset by a fall in China, the world's largest brewer. Anheuser-Busch InBev remained the top brewing group, producing 484.2 million hectolitres (over a quarter of global output), followed by Heineken, China Resources Snow Breweries, Carlsberg, and Molson Coors. BarthHaas forecasts global beer production will stabilize in 2026, with growth in Africa, Asia, and Central/South America offset by declines in Europe and North America.