Alcohol-free and low-alcohol beer now 8–9% of all beer sales in the Netherlands

Alcohol-free and low-alcohol beer is gaining popularity in the Netherlands, now accounting for 8 to 9 percent of total beer sales, AD reported. Consumption of these beers, which contain up to 0.5 percent alcohol, increased 14 percent over the past year.

Dutch brewers are ahead of schedule in reaching their goal of a 10 percent market share by 2030. “We will reach that goal earlier,” Abel van de Sluis of Nederlandse Brouwers, the trade association representing the fifteen largest breweries in the country, told AD. “You can hardly taste the difference between alcohol-free beer and the regular version.”

Specialty alcohol-free beers are particularly popular, with sales rising 27.5 percent—twice the growth rate of the overall alcohol-free beer market. "You can hardly taste the difference between alcohol-free beer and the regular version,” van de Sluis said.

On the other hand, elsewhere in the hospitality sector, the number of cafés continues a slow decline. The Chamber of Commerce (KVK) recorded 10,038 cafés, down from 10,240 a year earlier. Koninklijke Horeca Nederland (KHN) said younger consumers, especially Gen Z, are increasingly visiting coffee bars alongside traditional cafés. Since 2013, when there were more than 12,800 registered cafés, the total number has steadily decreased.