The first documented mentions of beer on the territory of today’s Czechia date back to the end of the 10th century AD, when breweries were set up and run by monasteries. Later, medieval towns and nobility became interested in beer and started brewing their own. Thus, the current beer industry in Czechia continues a long tradition that perfected over the centuries. However, the modern beer companies in Czechia have their roots in the 19th century, when breweries such as Pilsner Urquell, Staropramen, or Budweiser Budvar were founded.
Czechs, the nation of beer lovers
When somebody says Czechia, many people connect the country with a tasty and high-quality beer. This is a logical association for several reasons. Czechia is the ninth
largest beer producer in Europe, ranking behind France but ahead of Italy, which is an excellent placement when its size and population are considered. Despite the fluctuations in the
volume of beer Czechs consumed over the last decade and a significant decrease recorded in 2021, Czechia remained the country with the highest
beer consumption per capita in the world by a considerable margin.
Although consumption has been on a downward trend for some time, the Czech beer industry has been experiencing a renaissance in the past several years, with the
number of active beer breweries rising significantly. This is mainly due to a sharp increase in the
establishment of microbreweries with limited local presence.
International trade
Czechia is strongly export-oriented regarding the beer market. The
beer exports in 2022 were worth nearly 7.5 billion Czech koruna. Most beer was exported to neighboring countries, with Slovakia, Germany, and Poland being the three
top importers of Czech beer. However, even far more distant countries such as South Korea or the USA ranked among the ten largest importers of Czech beer. The
beer imports to Czechia were much lower, amounting to only around a tenth of the exports’ value. The
most popular countries from which Czechs import beer were Poland, Germany, and Hungary, followed by Mexico.
The giants of the Czech beer industry
Pilsner Urquell, Pivovary Staropramen, Heineken Czech Republic, and Budweiser Budvar had a
market share of over 80 percent. Pilsner Urquell, the strongest force on the Czech beer market,
sold the most beer worldwide out of these four brewing companies in 2022. Pivovary Staropramen
sold the second-highest volume of beer, amounting to 5.6 million hectoliters. Although Heineken is a Dutch brewing company, it owns multiple Czech breweries, producing brands such as Starobrno or Zlatopramen, and
most of its sales are domestic. On the other hand, Budweiser Budvar, the only state-owned brewery on this list, makes
most of its sales abroad.
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