UK: Women's taste for real ale on the rise - figures

By James Wilmore | 13 August 2013

CAMRA's figures suggest real ale is attracting a rising female following

More UK women are showing an interest in real ale as the category continues to shake-off its “flat cap image”, according to latest figures.

Consumer group the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) revealed today (13 August) that women now account for 22% of its membership, a 20,000 rise in the last decade. The group also pointed to research showing that the number of women trying real ale has grown from 14% to 34% in the last three years.

“Our national drink threw off its flat cap image years ago and now it is increasingly seen as a drink for women as well as men,” said Colin Valentine, CAMRA’s chairman. “That trend will help put the whole British beer market back on a track towards growth.”

In the last ten years, CAMRA's membership has more than doubled from 65,000 to 150,000. The UK now has around 1,000 breweries, producing around 8,000 different real ales.

The figures were released to coincide with CAMRA's Great British Beer Festival taking place at London Olympia from today until Saturday. Around 55,000 people are expected to attend over the five days.

Expert analysis

Beer in the United Kingdom

In 2011 beer sales remained weak due to the ongoing and growing consumer concern about government spending cuts on jobs and incomes, which continues to constrain consumer spending. Total volume sales of beer declined by 5%, a more dramatic decline compared to the previous year and slightly sharper than the review period total volume CAGR. This was due to ongoing beer tax increases in March, with beer seeing excise duty increased two percentage points above the level of inflation at 5%. This tax...

Sectors: Beer & cider