Bars owners on the Costa Blanca and Costa del Sol to Lose over 100 Million Litres of Beer due to the coronavirus lockdown.

By Tony Winterburn • Published: 13 Apr 2020 • 22:26

Bars, Restaurants and pubs across Spain could lose an estimated 100 million litres of beer together with millions of euros in perishable goods.

PUBS, bars, restaurants, coronavirus lockdown and hotels were ordered to close their doors in March to help slow the spread of the virus and the beer that they had in storage could spoil if left too long. Holidaymakers may be in for a nasty surprise as many establishments could be out of stock.

A packed beach Benidorm last year, holidaymakers consume millions of pints of beer in the summer season.

Most beer will spoil within a few months of delivery – so a long lockdown would mean that much will go to waste. As the production of beer is not classed as an essential service, brewers all over Spain will be anxiously waiting for an end to the lockdown, even then it will take weeks to get products delivered to bars etc.

As soon as an end to the lockdown is announced there will be a frantic rush for beer deliveries.

Ireland, however, may have the solution

Thousands of barrels of beer in Ireland are set to be written off and converted into animal feed due to lack of use during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The losses could equal millions of pints’ worth of beer in Ireland and brewers will foot the bill. Pubs in Ireland closed indefinitely on March 15 and have remained closed ever since. They will be closed until May 5 at the very earliest. Most beer barrels have a four-month shelf life, meaning that a huge number of barrels in pubs on March 15 would be out of date by the time pubs reopen. Any kegs that were already opened have to be used within two weeks or they will be out of date.

How long does a beer keg last?

If refrigerated within a kegerator that uses CO2, a keg will generally last at least six to eight weeks before it starts to lose its fresh taste. If you store it at the appropriate temperatures, pasteurised beer will last you at least three months, sometimes as long as six months. Unpasteurised beer will only last two months.

In a recent study, it was revealed that Spain has one bar for every 132 of its 47.2 million inhabitants which works out to a staggering 350,000 bars and restaurants!

In a freezer, ice cream will keep about two to three months so the same applies, millions of ice-creams will have to be thrown away, what a waste!