A malted-based alcoholic drink is one of the world’s oldest drinks. Beer is a widely consumed drink all over the world and a popular drink amongst all age groups. For centuries now, Beer has been prepared with brewing and fermentation processes. The beer-making procedure mainly includes grains such as malted barley, wheat, maize (corns), rice, and oats. Many modern beers are also brewed with the hop plant flowers, which act as a natural preservative and stabilizing agent. Let us know more about “Largest Beer Companies”.
Beer as an alcoholic drink has witnessed many transformations since the Pre-Pottery Neolithic age (around 8500 BC to 5500 BC) till present times. It is part of many nations’ cultures and traditions; it has also been a part of social traditions as well as pub culture. Nonetheless, this domestic brewing industry has developed into a global brewing business and consists of many regional, national, and multinational companies.
Some of the Largest Beer Companies and Brands:
On the world map, there are many factors that affect the beer industry, such as changing lifestyles, consumption patterns, cost, and mainly the growing popularity of the drink. Especially in the North American region, beer is trendy among the youngsters. Indeed, the European countries rank no 1. in the consumption of Beer across the globe.
Amidst all the variations, preferences, and transformations, some multinational companies are doing incredible business in the beer industry. In this article, we will have a look at some Top brands & companies in the market.
Anheuser-Busch InBev
AB InBev is an acquisition by the American brewer Anheuser Busch (which was already a conglomerate) established in 1852 in ST. Louis, Missouri. Anheuser Busch acquired the Brazilian-Belgium breweries Interbrew of Belgium and AmBev (means Beverages Company of America) from Brazil in 2008. This multinational brewing company is based in Leuven, Belgium, and its global management office is in New York City.
Its two major beer brands are Budweiser and Stella Artois, because of which the company ranks no.1 in the industry and gets a turnover of nearly $57 billion per annum. However, it is functional in 150 countries and has almost 600 beer brands.
Heineken
A 150-year-old Dutch brand is ruling the beer industry at no.1 position in Europe and no.2 position in the world. Heineken was founded in 1864 by Gerard Adriaan Heineken. Heineken produces a substantial amount of beer in its own brewery at Zoeterwoude, Netherlands. However, it also brews its beer in other countries such as the United Kingdom, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Serbia, Costa Rica, Australia, and Saint Lucia for their respective markets. The company owns over 165 breweries in 70 countries. Some of its beer brands are Amstel, Heineken, Desperados, Sol, Affligem, Tiger, Tecate, Red Stripe, Newcastle Brown Ale, and Krušovice.
In 2020, the estimated revenue of the company was nearly $24.7 million.
The marketing and advertising of the brand have always been strong with Heineken. It was the major sponsor of the UEFA Champions League and Rugby World Cup. In the late 90s,’ it was associated with Bond movies, and by 2016, it was the official beer of the FIA Formula One World Championship and Canadian Grand Prix. And in August 2021, Heineken has signed a deal as a global partner with all-women single-seater racing series.
Asahi
Asahi Group Holdings Ltd. is a Japanese global beer, beverages, and food brand headquartered in Sumida, Tokyo. The company was founded in 1889 in Osaka as Osaka Beer Company. During World War times, German prisoners in Japan worked at the Osaka brewery. From thereon, Asahi has acquired and merged with many breweries. From the late ’50s till the late 80s’ Asahi Gold was the company’s primary beer which was taken over by Asahi Super Dry beer. And now Asahi Super Dry beer is the flagship beer brand. The estimated revenue of the company is nearly $20 billion. The company’s other beer brands that are available in the market are:
- Asahi Draft
- Asahi Gold
- Asahi Stout
- Asahi Z – Dry lager
- Asahi Black
- Asahi Prime Time – German Pilsener style lager (only available in Japan)
China Resources Snow Breweries
China Resources snow was initially named as Shenyang Snow beer company. It was a merger between China Resources enterprise and the UK- based multinational brewing company SABMiller; however, it is now entirely owned by CR Snow Breweries Ltd. It is headquartered in Dongcheng, Beijing, China, and the company’s flagship beer brand is SNOW which marks significant sales on this beer. The estimated revenue of the company is nearly $4.8 billion. Some of the company’s other brands are Huadan Yate, Green Leaves, New Three Star, Löwen, Largo, and Sip.
Carlsberg
A Danish multinational brewer was established in 1847 by J.C. Jacobsen. The company has witnessed many changes and transformations over the years; however, it has survived the competitive market. Now, the company is operational in three different market sections- Northern & Western Europe, Eastern Europe, and Asia. And it is headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark. Carlsberg beer has been the flagship beer brand of the company, but along with this star product, the company has a vast portfolio of 150 other beers and beverages. A few of the company’s star products are Tuborg, Somersby cider, Neptun, and Kronenbourg. The company has shown steady growth due to many mergers and acquisitions, and the estimated revenue for 2020 is nearly $9 billion.
Molson Coors Brewing
Molson Coors Beverage Company is an American- Canadian Multinational beer company. The merger between Molson brewing company and Coors brewing company took place in 2005, and they have their headquarters in Colorado, USA & Montreal, Canada. Molson Brewery was established in 1786 by John Molson in Montreal, Canada. However, the Coors Brewery was established in 1873 by Adolph Coors in Colorado, USA.
Post the merger of these two breweries, the company has been the seventh-largest in revenue generation. Its superior brand is Coors and estimates revenue of nearly $11 billion. The company brews and markets from many places in Canada, Europe, and the USA, such as in Quebec, Colorado, Hungary, Ontario, British Columbia, Wisconsin, and the Czech Republic.
Kirin
A Japanese Brewing company, Kirin was established in 1885. The company also has other operating units, such as the Kirin Brewery Company Ltd, Mercian Corporation, and Kirin Beverages Company Ltd. It is also a member of the Mitsubishi Group. It is estimated that the company brews nearly 42.5-million- hectoliters of beer yearly. It is known for its two most popular beers Kirin Lager and Ichiban Shibori. However, its top seller is Kirin Tanrei. The company is now headquartered in Tokyo.
The company’s revenue is determined to be nearly $16.5 billion yearly, and the company holdings outside Japan are with various breweries. Some of the breweries are Asia Pacific breweries (Singapore), Brooklyn Brewery (USA), Lion Nathan ltd (Australia/New Zealand), San Miguel Brewery (Philippines), Kirin Europe GmbH (Germany), and many more.
Constellation Brands
The company was established in 1945 by Marvin Sands in New York as Canandaigua Industries. It sold bulk wine to bottlers, and thereon, it is known as an American producer & marketer of beer, wine, and other spirits. In early 2000 the company was named Constellation Brands, Inc. The company is also known as the extensive beer import company in the USA. It has the third-largest share of 7.4% in beer supplies and records a revenue of $7.6 billion.
Constellation Brands is now based in Victor, New York. The company has nearly 100 brands in its drink’s portfolio, and for beer, the brands are Corona (widely consumed beer), Modelo Especial, Negra Modelo, Pacifico, and American Craft beer Funky Budha.
Tsingtao Brewery Group
One of the oldest breweries founded by Anglo-German Brewery Co. Ltd. Post-Civil war, the company once owned by the Tsui family was undertaken by the State until the privatization took place in the early 1990s’. In the 90s’ three other breweries merged and were named Tsingtao Brewery Company Ltd. This 118-year-old company is located in Shandong, China, and ranks as China’s second-largest brewery. It is also gaining immense popularity in the world market. The company’s flagship beer is Tsingtao beer; however, there are other beers for the local market like the Tsingtao Dark Beer and Tsingtao Green beer.
Yanjing
Yanjing, mainly targeting the domestic market of South and North China, is also turning into the world’s largest beer company. Beijing Yanjing Brewery was founded in 1980 in Beijing, China. A state-owned enterprise and 3rd most prominent company in China. The company has a record of producing 57.1 million hectoliters of beer in 2013. The brewery is known for its wide range of products other than beer like distilled wine, mineral water, plastic boxes, feed, and yeast. The various brands under which these products are sold are Liquan, Huiguan, Yanjing, and Xuelu.
Castel Group
Castel Group, established in 1949 by Pierre Castel, is a French Beverage company. The company has a portfolio of beers but is known as the largest producer of Wine in France. It also distributes foreign wine in France. In the 90s’ the Castel Group purchased the African Beer Brasseries et Glacières Internationales (BGI). The leading beer brands under the company portfolio are Flag & Castel. Each year it has a record of producing more than 28 million hectoliters of beer and soft drinks in Africa. The Castel Group is headquartered in Bordeaux, France, and has $2 to 5 billion of yearly revenue.
ThaiBev
Thai Beverage company is one of South East Asia’s largest beverage companies. The company is owned by a Thai Chinese billionaire Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi. Chang beer is the star product, and the company is involved in brewing and distributing beer. It is headquartered in Bangkok and has a revenue of $5.7 million.
Oettinger Brewery GmbH
In 1956, the Kollmar family established the Prince’s brewhouse at Oettingen which is known as (Fürstliche Genossenschaftsbrauerei”) in German. The company is listed as one of Germany’s largest beer brands and ranks amongst the top 30 globally. The company produces nearly 40 different types of drinks and beers. The brewery has a record of producing nearly 8 million hectoliters of beer each year. It is headquartered in Bayern, Germany, and its beers are more often found in supermarkets than pubs. Oettinger beers are at much cheaper rates in the market as it adapts several ways of doing it. The brewing process at Oettinger is automated to a larger extent and has fewer number of employees.
Brewmeister Brewery
Brewmeister is known for producing the world’s strongest beer. Brewmeister is the Keith Brewery Ltd and was founded in 2012 in Scotland. The company is well grown in a short period and exports beer globally. It had produced its first beer Armageddon, which had 65% alcohol by volume (ABV). Within a year, the company came up with a more robust product and replaced Armageddon with Snake Venom. Their new product Snake Venom, had 67.5% ABV and a warning on the label. The warning was to have only one beer per sitting.
The company has won the Guinness Book of Record for Snake Venom Beer as the world’s strongest beer. Though the Snake Venom beer tastes like liquor, it is produced in different flavors, from caramel to bubble-gum.
Low alcohol beers
If there are high alcoholic content beers, then there are even low alcoholic beers in the market. Low alcohol beers are also known as Light beer, non-alcoholic beer, small ale, or near-beer. These beers just have the taste of the standard beers and not the alcoholic effect. Some of the light beer brands in the USA are Bud Light, Coors Light, and Miller Lite. The alcohol found in Bud light is 4.2% which is less compared to Budweiser.
Health effects, Adverse reactions, and Calories
Beer drinking can be an individual choice or a habit, but it indeed has some effects on your health. It is the most popular drink in comparison to the other alcoholic drinks. Beer can surely intervene in the sugar level of your body and can give stress to your liver if drunk in excess. As per the research, on average, beer has about 150 calories in 12 ounces that is 355ml.
Summing-up
The top 10 chart fluctuates every year, but the most popular and widely consumed beer brand bags the no. 1 position. There are various brands that are brewing and marketing this popular drink across the globe; though the basic formula of beer making remains the same, only the most sold brand tops the chart. Definitely, sales and revenue decide the position in the chart every year. However, some remain the favorite brand irrespective of the no.1 position.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the beer revenue globally?
Globally the revenue for the beer market is estimated to be nearly US$623.2 billion in 2020.
Has beer consumption increased over the years?
Yes, it has rapidly increased to 2.5 times larger than the global wine market.
Which is the no.1 beer in the world?
Budweiser ranks on the no.1 list of the beers and most valued brand globally in 2021.
Which is the most popular beer brand in the USA?
According to YouGov research, Guinness is the no.1 beer brand in the USA.
Who is the largest beer producer in Germany?
In Germany, the Radeberger Group is the largest brewery group.
Which country drinks the most beer?
Out of all Czech Republic drinks, nearly 188.6 liters per capita.
