Pubs may have lost extra 35 million pint sales in sunny April

An estimated 741 million pints could have been sold in UK pubs last month had lockdown measures not forced them to close, according to the British Beer and Pub Association.

The trade body claims that 35 million extra pints of beer would have been sold in April than under normal circumstances due to the unseasonal sunny weather. This means that a total of 745 million pints may have been sold across the month overall.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson told pubs, bars and restaurants to close “as soon as they reasonably can” on 20 March as the UK entered a lockdown to stem the spread of coronavirus. They are allowed to operate as takeaways, but that hasn’t stopped beer sales falling off a cliff over the past two months. According to the BBPA, beer sales in pubs fell by 40% in March compared to last year, which means that UK pubs and bars lost well over a third of their income after just 11 days of closure.

Sales in the ‘off-trade’ – such as supermarkets and off-licenses, rose by 10.6% on the same period last year, according to figures from the British Beer and Pub Association.

However, this did not make up for the huge loss of beer sales in pubs, resulting in total beer sales in March 2020 down 12.7% when compared to March 2019.

Last month, Michael Gove warned that hospitality venues would be “among the last” to re-open when lockdown restrictions are relaxed.

The BBPA believes last month should have been the best April for beer sales in a decade, due to it being the sunniest April on record according to the Met Office as well as the fifth hottest.

Emma McClarkin, Chief Executive of the BBPA, said: “April should have been a brilliant and much-needed boost for our sector – as many as 35 million extra pints could have been sold compared to normal.

“Pubs losing this additional sales opportunity adds to their woes at this present time.”