Bulgarian brewers invest €170 million as non-alcoholic beer sales surge
Bulgarian brewing companies invested more than €170 million over five years despite a 5% decline in beer volumes in 2025. Non-alcoholic beer sales rose 53% to 122,780 hectolitres and continued growing in the first half of 2026.
Investment reaches a two-decade high
Bulgarian brewing companies invested more than 331 million leva (€170 million) in sector development and domestic production over the past five years, according to the Union of Brewers in Bulgaria. Investment approached €45 million in 2025, the highest annual level recorded by the industry in two decades.
More than 40% of that expenditure went into new malt-production capacity. Manager reported that total capital investment since the privatisation of Bulgarian breweries began in 1994 has reached approximately 1.625 billion leva, or €831 million. Bulgaria currently has 42 active breweries: three large companies, seven small and medium-sized producers and 32 microbreweries. The wider production and commercial chain supports about 22,000 jobs, with 9% of those workers employed directly by breweries. Average monthly pay at brewing plants exceeds €1,650, according to the industry union.
Overall beer volumes decline
The investment comes as Bulgaria's broader beer market contracts. Domestic breweries produced 4.42 million hectolitres in 2025, while sales reached almost 5 million hectolitres. Volumes were 5% below 2024 levels. Annual consumption, including non-alcoholic products, stood at 76 litres per person. Three-quarters of Bulgarians drink beer at least once a month, while more than half do so weekly, Mediapool reported.
The decline follows a wider European pattern. Brewers of Europe data cited by Mediapool show that EU beer production decreased 2.9% and consumption fell 3.2% from 2024. Since 2019, European production has declined 8.6% and sales have dropped 9.2%. Bulgaria nevertheless retained 13th place in the EU for both production and consumption. Carlsberg Bulgaria executive director Teodor Nestorov said inflation could prevent the football World Cup from delivering an overall increase in consumption, despite matches traditionally supporting beer demand.
Non-alcoholic segment expands
Non-alcoholic beer is moving against the declining headline market. Bulgarian sales reached 122,780 hectolitres in 2025, an increase of 53% from 2024, according to the brewers' union. Sales grew by another 14% year on year during the first six months of 2026. Producers introduced 20 new beer brands and varieties over the preceding year, including products with 0% alcohol and low-alcohol beer mixes.
The trend is also visible across the EU, where non-alcoholic beer sales increased 6% in 2025 and have risen by more than 38% since 2020. Fakti reported that one in every 12 beers consumed in the bloc is now non-alcoholic. Packaging policy is the sector's next major issue. Bulgaria is required to establish a deposit-return system by the end of 2028, Manager reported. An Ipsos survey found that 87% of Bulgarians aged 15 or older would return PET bottles and cans in exchange for a €0.10 deposit. For brewers investing in both malt capacity and new product categories, the system's design will affect packaging costs, collection infrastructure and access to recycled material.
