Americans Are Actually Drinking Less During the Pandemic
One bright spot for the struggling industry is the continued boom in non-alcoholic beer, part of a shift to healthy living accelerated by Covid-19.
Before the coronavirus, the U.S. alcohol industry struggled to respond to a shift toward healthier and lower-calorie options. The pandemic has only accelerated that shift. Above, a bartender wearing gloves cleans glasses at a restaurant in Houston on May 27, 2020.
Photographer: Callaghan O'Hare/BloombergDuring the coronavirus pandemic, people are drinking less. (Yes, you read that correctly.)
While the masses are buying more booze from grocers and liquor stores to drink at home, that hasn’t been enough to fill the gaping hole created by declines in shipments to restaurants, bars and sporting venues that were closed to slow the virus. Global alcohol consumption isn’t expected to return to pre-Covid-19 levels until 2024, and the U.S. recovery will take even longer, according to researcher IWSR said.