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The price of beer in 2019 will be rising. This is claimed by scientists who have investigated the relationship between the growth of barley and the growing climate change.

The barley crop has been hit by drought

Barley is ranked fourth in the global ranking. It is just like corn, rice and wheat, which makes it one of the most desirable crops in the world.

Barley needs an optimum growth of between 190 mm and 1760 mm of rainfall per year and a constant temperature of about 20 degrees Celsius.

However, according to a number of observers, 2018 has been one of the hottest with the least necessary rainfall in recent decades. The lack of rain in the first half of this year affected some parts of the US, Africa, Europe and Russia.

Drought this year also affected barley crops, which price rose by up to 40% due to a shortage of stock.

Beer price will also raise at the expense of livestock

Barley is grown in more than 100 countries around the world. Its biggest producers are Russia, France, Germany, Ukraine, Canada, Australia, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom and the US, which grow around 75% of its total stock.

However, only 15% of its total annual harvest goes to production of alcoholic beverages. The other 85% is mainly processed as animal feed, which may affect its redistribution among other fields in the next year.

In addition, a study published in October warns that as a result of increasing climate imbalances, barley production can fall by as much as 17%.

Its absence at the expense of agricultural feedstock will be felt especially by countries that have long been at the forefront of beer consumption. This applies, for example, to the USA, China, Ireland, France and the Czech Republic.

Countries divided by the amount of beer drunk in liters. Source: Wikipedia.org

Breweries have to deal with the situation on their own

One of the largest breweries in the world, Carlsberg and Heineken, are preparing to rise its beer prices by up to 16% in 2019. The price of their production will rise by as much because barley accounts for up to 20% of the total cost of their product.

According to Professor Davis of the University of California, the price of an ordinary six-pack beer can rise by as much as $ 8.31 in the US, which would double the original price.

Although the study published does not concern the economic consequences affecting beer producers, Professor Davis assumes that larger breweries will be affected more by the unfavorable development of this situation than those aimed at producing smaller, craft brands.