As consumer health awareness grows, zero-alcohol beer has gained popularity. With fewer calories compared to other carbonated drinks, it serves as a viable substitute for consumers, potentially fueling market expansion. The non-alcoholic beer, wine, and spirits market has seen rapid growth in recent years, prompting major breweries to introduce non-alcoholic options to stay competitive in a landscape shifting towards moderation and sobriety. This trend makes the market worth examining closely.
Heineken led the non-alcoholic beer market in the US in 2023, boasting sales of USD 77.45 million, followed by Bud (Anheuser-Busch) with USD 55.44 million, and Athletic Brewing with USD 51.83 million, according to data released by Statista.. Anheuser-Busch also claimed the 4th and 5th positions, with Busch generating USD 33.61 million and O'Douls reaching USD 28.37 million in 2023. Combining the sales of Anheuser-Busch's three brands, the US arm of AB InBev surpassed Heineken with a total of USD 117.42 million. Unfortunately in 2013, AB InBev had to offload its US perpetual rights over the Corona and Modelo beer brands to Constellations Brands in response to the US Department of Justice’s lawsuit to block the takeover of Mexican brewing group Modelo on antitrust grounds. Otherwise, it would have another winner brand in the US in its portfolio.
Corona Cero, the non-alcoholic version of Corona Especial, demonstrated promising growth worldwide and competes in many markets with Heineken 0.0 which aired last year the first-ever nationally televised advertisement for non-alcoholic beer during the Super Bowl in the US. However, also AB InBev has ambitious goals for Corona Cero, making it the official sponsor of the Olympic Games in the coming years (inside.beer, 12.1.2024).
MolsonCoors, the other major brewing group in the US and Canada, has struggled to make a significant impact in the non-alcoholic beer market despite efforts to shift towards a beverage group focusing on both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. Despite the impressive growth rates of Coors Edge, the non-alcoholic version of Coors Banquet and Coors Light launched in November 2019, it hasn't caught up with competitors and likely had sales of less than USD 15 million last year.
The unexpected winner in the race is Athletic Brewing Company, the sole notable brewery specializing in non-alcoholic beer. Founded in 2017 by Bill Shufelt and John Walker, Athletic Brewing initially received USD 3 million in backing and later secured a USD 51 million investment from Keurig Dr Pepper (inside.beer, 9.11.2022). The brand experienced remarkable growth, scaling from 1,391 to approximately 715,443 hectoliters in its new brewery, capturing a 2.2% market share in groceries and constituting 10% of beer sales at Whole Foods. In contrast, nonalcoholic beer sales in restaurants and bars outpaced overall beer sales growth, increasing by 13% last year.
