German beer brewers: Concern about bottle shortages in summer

German breweries fear a shortage of beer bottles from the summer. The main reason for this is the sharp rise in energy prices. Consumers should return empties quickly.

Beer brewers worry about bottle shortages. “We see bottlenecks in the summer at the latest,” said Holger Eichele, general manager of the German Brewers’ Association, the “Bild”. The situation is extremely tense. In order to ease the situation, consumers should return their returnable bottles as quickly as possible.

Rising energy costs are the main reason

In particular, the rapidly increasing energy prices would make the production of the bottles more expensive. The German Glass Industry Association also warned that the energy price crisis is presenting the industry with major challenges.

A spokeswoman said energy costs are now 500 percent higher than a year ago. The production of glass bottles is very energy-intensive. According to the spokeswoman, energy accounts for up to 20 percent of the operating costs in the glass industry.

Diversity of the German beer landscape under threat?

But a lack of truck drivers in the logistics industry is now making it more difficult to maintain the supply chains, said Eichele. “Those who don’t have long-term contracts currently have to pay 80 percent more for new glass bottles than they did a year ago. Some breweries are at risk of going idle, and they may soon be without bottles.”

The deputy head of the Berlin-Brandenburg brewery association, Stefan Fritsche, sees the diversity on the German beer market under threat. Because the shortage of bottles hit small and medium-sized breweries in particular.