93% of alcohol consumed in India is hard liquor
Chittaranjan Tembheka
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Mumbai:
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Around 93% of al cohol consumed in India is hard liquor. Tipplers in the country love their spirits and are yet to warm up to beer, the chilled beverage that the rest of the world prefers.The consumption of beer (alcoholic content up to 9%) stood at only 7% leaving wine consumption with a statistical ly negligible figure of 0.1%, ac cording to a survey by All India Brewers Association (AIBA).
Interestingly, consump tion pattern in richer coun tries show beer and wine scor ing higher, says an AIBA white paper on the beer industry .
One of the reasons for low beer consumption in India is attributed to high taxation Higher VAT, service tax and excise duty leads to beer be ing priced as much as IMFL or at times even more, prompt ing people to go for spirits which give them stronger “kick“ than beer or wine.
Estimates from an NSSO survey show that at the nation al level, per capita per week consumption of toddy and country liquor was almost twice (1.9 times) the consump tion of beer, foreign liquor and wine combined. “For Rs 100 one can buy 180ml of loca whiskey , which works out to about Rs 1.3 per ml of alcohol The same amount will buy a 650ml bottle of strong beer, but because of the lower alcoho level, people pay over twice as much per mlr,“ the AIBA pa per said. “Beer if taxed ratio nally , positioned more liberal ly, viewed more positively wil wean people away from hard liquor. This will therefore do immense good to society at large, if beer is delinked from hard liquor in terms of perception, taxation, availability and distribution.“
“Neither the law protects people from such intoxication nor there is any policy that promotes other beverages than those containing larger amount of pure spirits to prohibit bad effects on health.Over and above the taxation is so high that beer prices are at an all-time high forcing people to drink hard liquor, which they apparently like more for the `kick',“ said sources. It has been observed that an average Indian pays five to six times the manufacturing cost, making liquor prices significantly higher than 95% of other countries and more so in case of beer.
“India needs to differentiate between distilled alcoholic beverages (high strength alcohol products) from fermented alcoholic beverages like beer. Moderation or responsible consumption must be encouraged by counselling and enforced by policing,“ said AIBA director general Shobhan Roy . Roy de manded pricing formula based on alcoholic content to place beer at level-playing field in the Indian market.“Beer has much lower content of alcohol compared to IMFL and country liquor, itsModerate consumption of beer as against other forms of alcohol products may lead to reduction in the level of intoxication and hence, positive societal impact.
Therefore, there is a strong case for the government authorities to provide necessary policy support for facilitating a shift in alcohol consumption from hard liquor to beer. Kerala has made an attempt and we need to support it,Beer taxation is becoming volume and price driven without considering the low alcohol content. This is the crux of the dichotomy that low alcoholic beverages like beer are declining and high spirits are progressing leading to social issues.“ he added.
As per the AIBA data, the major market for the beer is the southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, which account for almost 50%. Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh were the other big markets.
The paper pointed out that the beer market in India was valued at USD 4.13 billion (about Rs 24,000 crore) in 2013, contributing significantly to GDP and boosting tax revenues of the government. The industry had a compounded annual growth rate of over 12% between 2004 and 2013, but it declined to 3.3% in 2012-13.
For the full report log on to http:www.timesofindia.com
Interestingly, consump tion pattern in richer coun tries show beer and wine scor ing higher, says an AIBA white paper on the beer industry .
One of the reasons for low beer consumption in India is attributed to high taxation Higher VAT, service tax and excise duty leads to beer be ing priced as much as IMFL or at times even more, prompt ing people to go for spirits which give them stronger “kick“ than beer or wine.
Estimates from an NSSO survey show that at the nation al level, per capita per week consumption of toddy and country liquor was almost twice (1.9 times) the consump tion of beer, foreign liquor and wine combined. “For Rs 100 one can buy 180ml of loca whiskey , which works out to about Rs 1.3 per ml of alcohol The same amount will buy a 650ml bottle of strong beer, but because of the lower alcoho level, people pay over twice as much per mlr,“ the AIBA pa per said. “Beer if taxed ratio nally , positioned more liberal ly, viewed more positively wil wean people away from hard liquor. This will therefore do immense good to society at large, if beer is delinked from hard liquor in terms of perception, taxation, availability and distribution.“
“Neither the law protects people from such intoxication nor there is any policy that promotes other beverages than those containing larger amount of pure spirits to prohibit bad effects on health.Over and above the taxation is so high that beer prices are at an all-time high forcing people to drink hard liquor, which they apparently like more for the `kick',“ said sources. It has been observed that an average Indian pays five to six times the manufacturing cost, making liquor prices significantly higher than 95% of other countries and more so in case of beer.
“India needs to differentiate between distilled alcoholic beverages (high strength alcohol products) from fermented alcoholic beverages like beer. Moderation or responsible consumption must be encouraged by counselling and enforced by policing,“ said AIBA director general Shobhan Roy . Roy de manded pricing formula based on alcoholic content to place beer at level-playing field in the Indian market.“Beer has much lower content of alcohol compared to IMFL and country liquor, itsModerate consumption of beer as against other forms of alcohol products may lead to reduction in the level of intoxication and hence, positive societal impact.
Therefore, there is a strong case for the government authorities to provide necessary policy support for facilitating a shift in alcohol consumption from hard liquor to beer. Kerala has made an attempt and we need to support it,Beer taxation is becoming volume and price driven without considering the low alcohol content. This is the crux of the dichotomy that low alcoholic beverages like beer are declining and high spirits are progressing leading to social issues.“ he added.
As per the AIBA data, the major market for the beer is the southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, which account for almost 50%. Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh were the other big markets.
The paper pointed out that the beer market in India was valued at USD 4.13 billion (about Rs 24,000 crore) in 2013, contributing significantly to GDP and boosting tax revenues of the government. The industry had a compounded annual growth rate of over 12% between 2004 and 2013, but it declined to 3.3% in 2012-13.
For the full report log on to http:www.timesofindia.com
Source: Times of India, 9-02-2016
