The alcohol industry in New Zealand
It is important to learn about the alcohol industry as they have a large influence on national and local alcohol decisions in New Zealand.
In New Zealand, the production and sale of alcohol is a multi-billion dollar industry. The key players can be broadly categorised into four groups:
- Growers – e.g. vineyards;
- Manufacturers - wineries, breweries and distillers;
- Retail distributors - supermarkets, bottle stores, grocery stores
- Hospitality sector – cafés, restaurants, bars and clubs.
This section will focus on the alcohol industry as it relates to consumption in New Zealand.
Background: What New Zealanders drink
Amount of alcoholic beverages we drink
Because a tax is placed on all alcohol beverages, every 3 months (when the amount of tax paid on alcohol is released) we can see how much alcohol is available for consumption in New Zealand and how much is exported. From the domestic figures released by Statistics New Zealand, in the year 2021:
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499 million litres of alcoholic drinks were available for domestic consumption:
- 292 million litres of beer,
- 107 million litres of wine,
- 100 million litres of spirits and spirit-based drinks.
New Zealanders drink more beer by volume - we drink over 2.7 times as much beer than wine, and 2.9 times as much beer than spirits & spirit-based drinks.
Volume of pure alcohol from these beverages
The same volume of different beverages can contribute different amounts of alcohol for consumption. For example, one litre of spirits has a higher alcohol content than one litre of beer.
Therefore in terms of pure alcohol available, each type of alcoholic beverages contributes a similar proportion of pure alcohol:
- 13 million litres of pure alcohol comes from beer,
- 11 million litres from wine,
- and 12 million litres from spirits and spirit-based drinks.
This totals 36 million litres of pure alcohol per year or 8.7 litres per person aged over 15 years. This means that every New Zealander drinks an average of almost 2 standard drinks per day. However, in reality, we know that rather than New Zealanders drinking small amounts daily, almost half of all alcohol (46%) in New Zealand is consumed in heavy drinking sessions.
Generally, about 87% of all the alcohol sold in New Zealand is produced locally, and 13% is imported. Bottled spirits are more frequently imported in comparison to beer and RTDs which are often made in New Zealand. We also export about 33% of all alcohol made in New Zealand.
The largest producers of alcohol in New Zealand
The two major alcohol producers in New Zealand are Lion Pty Ltd and DB Breweries Ltd. Both companies are owned overseas. Among the top five producers, only Delegat’s wine is a New Zealand-owned company.
The beer industry
Two major breweries dominate the New Zealand beer market: Lion and DB Breweries. The key consumers of beer in New Zealand are young adult males.
Although beer became available in supermarkets in 1999, there has been a downward trend in the volume of beer sold in New Zealand, from 322.5 million litres in 2008 to 279.9 million litres in 2012. Since then, there appeared to have an increasing trend in the volume of beer available for consumption. In 2021, there were 291.9 million litres of beer available for consumption.
Recent trends show that there has been growth in sales volumes of premium brand craft beers and also in low-strength beer (following the introduction of the lower blood alcohol limits for drivers in 2014). In 2021, the volume of high-strength beer ( was over 5.4 times the volume in 2010, and now comprises over 16% of the total volume of beer available to the New Zealand market.
The wine industry
There are 717 wineries in New Zealand. By far the biggest wine producers in New Zealand are Lion (Japan), Pernod Ricard (French), Treasury Estate Wines (NZ), Delegat's Wine Group (NZ), Constellation Wines (USA), and Villa Maria (NZ).
Since becoming available for sale in supermarkets in 1989, consumption of wine has more than doubled since 1984 to 95 million litres in 2009. In 2020, there were 107 million litres of wine available for consumption. New Zealand research has shown that the introduction of wine into supermarkets had a significant impact on consumption. Today, around 60% of all wine is sold through supermarkets.
Wine has shown the greatest increases in affordability over time. Today, New Zealanders drink almost twice as much white wine as red wine.
Wine contributes significantly to trade. It is New Zealand’s fifth largest export good.
It is important to note that New Zealand is only major wine producing nation to have a single industry body, representing and advocating for the interests of its entire grape and wine industry. This is called the New Zealand Winegrowers Association.
Spirits, RTDs, and Liqueurs
In 2021, around 100 million litres of spirits and spirit-based (RTDs & Liqueurs) beverages were available for domestic consumption (rose 11.6 per cent from the previous year). The volume of spirits increased from 9.4 million litres in 2003 to 15.9 million litres in 2021 (rose 2.3 per cent from 2020). The volume of spirit-based beverages increased from 34.5 million litres in 2003 to around 83.8 million litres in 2021 (rose 11.6 per cent from 2020).
In 2010, Minister of Justice Simon Power announced plans to prohibit the sale of RTDs with greater than 5% alcohol content or 1.5 standard drinks per container. However, this plan never came to fruition and the Government decided not to introduce regulations regarding the maximum strength of an RTD, but rather, permit manufacturers to set up their own rules. The industry decided that the maximum strength of an RTD would be 7% or two standard drinks per bottle or can.
Spirits are consumed by all age groups and across both sexes. Pure spirits are more often consumed by older age groups whilst RTDs are preferentially consumed by young men and women.
The contribution of spirits and spirits-based drinks to New Zealand’s pure alcohol intake has been increasing over time, from 23.4% in 2005 to 31.6% in 2020. There is strong evidence since the introduction of RTDs into the market increased alcohol consumption markedly among young females aged 14 to 17 years.
The largest retailers of alcohol in New Zealand
In New Zealand, the purchasing of alcohol from off-licences has increased over time. From 1986 to 2016, the proportion of all alcohol sold was from off-licences increased from approximately 59% to 75%.
The 3000-plus off-licences in New Zealand comprises bottle stores, grocery stores, supermarkets, winemakers, taverns/hotels, breweries, catering companies, and others. Over one-third of off-licences are standalone bottle stores, whilst >10% are grocery stores, and >10% are supermarkets.
Supermarkets
The supermarket (which can only sell beer, wine (includes cider) and mead) is the most widely used channel for purchasing alcohol.
Alcohol sales from supermarkets have changed considerably over time. In 2000, the supermarket share of beer sales was 12% and for wine it was 43%. In 2008, they sold around 30% of all beer and just under 60% of all wine. In 2008 it was estimated that beer and wine sales in supermarkets were worth $1 billion.
There are two major supermarket chains in New Zealand: Woolworth New Zealand (184 Countdown stores, 62 Fresh Choice and Supervalue stores) and Foodstuffs (140 New World stores, >50 PaknSave stores, 240 Four Square stores).
The Ministry of Justice has stated that the price is so cheap that many smaller bottle stores buy their alcohol products from supermarkets.
New Zealand research has shown that the introduction of wine into supermarkets had a significant impact on consumption.
Today, around 250,000 residents of West Auckland cannot buy alcohol from their supermarkets as off-licence supply is controlled by the Portage and Waitakere Licensing Trusts. No supermarkets in the Invercargill Licensing Trust can sell alcohol.
Bottle stores
There are almost 1000 bottle stores in New Zealand. It is important to know that many of these are owned by larger alcohol producers and retailers.
For example, Liquorland and Henry’s Beer Wines & Spirits are owned by Foodstuffs. In 2016, Foodstuffs bought the retail chain The Mill Liquorsave from Independent Liquor Ltd, and rebranded them as Liquorland stores. Liquor King, is owned by Lion.
Hospitality sector (on-licences)
The number of on-licences has trebled from 2423 in 1990 to 7565 in 2010. From 2000 to 2009 there was a 26% increase in the number of pubs and a 37% increase in the number of licensed cafés and restaurants.
The NZ Hospitality Association plays a major role in the supply of alcohol in the on-licence sector, representing 3,000 hospitality and commercial accommodation businesses throughout the country. The Association advocates on behalf of its members. They have been involved as an interested party in the appeals to Local Alcohol Policies around New Zealand.
The Restaurant Association of New Zealand also represents the interests of those working in the restaurant business.
Past-year drinking prevalence
The prevalence (%) of past-year drinking among the total population, 2020/21 NZ Health Survey.
By age-group (years)
By ethnic group (total response)
By neighbourhoood deprivation
Drinking trends in older adults
Drinking patterns among adults aged 45 years and above
Alcohol use among older age remains common, although it decreases with advancing age.
In 2020/21, more than three-quarters (average 76.5%) of every age group over 45 years reported drinking in the past year. More than 75% of men in these older age groups reported drinking.
More than 3 in every 4 NZ adults aged 45+ have consumed alcohol in the past year
The prevalence of drinking in the past year among older men and women is shown below:
Hazardous drinking patterns remain prevalent throughout older New Zealanders
New Zealanders aged 45 years and above comprised ~41% (337,000) of all hazardous drinkers in 2020/21.
Whilst 18 to 24 year olds maintain the highest (34.9%) prevalence of hazardous drinking in the country (41% among men aged 18-24 years), hazardous drinking patterns remain prevalent throughout older age groups in New Zealand, particularly among men. In 2020/21, the prevalence of hazardous drinking among men was:
- 30.9% among men aged 45-54 years;
- 26.6% among men aged 55-64 years;
- 17.5% among men aged 65-74 years, and
- 7.3% among men aged 75 years and above.
A substantial proportion of older men drink hazardously, placing themselves and others at risk of harm
Substantial increases in hazardous drinking prevalence among older adults
Of particular concern, there have been significant increases in hazardous drinking over time among older age groups in New Zealand. Following declines in hazardous drinking between 2006/07 and 2011/12, the prevalence of hazardous drinking increased from 2011/12 to 2015/16. These increases were substantial:
- increased by more than 50% among those aged 45-54 years (11.7% to 18.5%);
- increased by more than 70% among those aged 55-64 years (8.4% to 14.4%); and
- almost doubled for those aged 65-74 years (from 5.5% to 10%).
Therefore, all of the positive reductions in drinking that had been achieved between 2006/07 and 2011/12 were lost by 2015/16. The level of increase was so great that some age groups (35-44yrs, 45-54yrs, 65-74yrs) had significantly higher levels of hazardous drinking in 2015/2016 than in 2006/07.
No real change in the prevalence of hazardous drinking in the past six years of comparable surveys (between 2015/16 and 2020/21). Compared to 2019/20, there was a significant reduction in hazardous drinking among the the 45-54 yrs age group in 2020/21 (note that last year showed a big one-off spike in drinking in this group; it has now returned to usual levels).
Should these trends continue, older people will represent a much greater proportion of hazardous drinkers in New Zealand. This is due to the population of older adults being predicted to double by the year 2036 (based on the projection from 2013). At this point, approximately 24% of the population will be aged 65 years and over. High levels of alcohol use in older populations will have significant implications on our strained healthcare system and will compromise well-being in older adults.
Other drinking measures of older adults
The annual New Zealand Health Surveys utilise the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) to assess the prevalence of hazardous drinking in New Zealand. However, this test is not age-specific. Other measures have been developed to quantify alcohol use in older people. This includes the CARET (Comorbidity Alcohol Risk Evaluation) that takes into account other factors that relate to alcohol use and harm among older adults, not just an older person’s drinking frequency and quantity. A report into older people's drinking can be found here.
Comparisons with other countries
New Zealand drinkers were found to have some of the highest levels of drinking across the countries studied. The proportion of frequent heavy drinkers was higher in New Zealand compared with most countries, including England and the United States.
The differential effects of alcohol use on older adults
There is considered no safe level of alcohol use among older adults.
No safe level of alcohol use exists for older adults.
Older adults are more susceptible to the harmful effects of alcohol at any level of consumption. The same amount of alcohol produces a higher blood alcohol concentration in older than younger adults due to changes in body composition, leading to a longer time for the acute effects of alcohol to diminish. The ability to absorb, metabolise, and excrete alcohol remains largely unchanged with increasing age.
Thinking skills and memory, co-ordination and mobility may also be more affected by alcohol among older adults. Alcohol also affects emotions and mood.
Conditions such as chronic health problems, medication interaction, and other risky behaviours including drinking driving, further contribute to more harmful effects of alcohol on older adults.
Although there has been debate over the potential “health benefits” from low-risk drinking (particularly for older drinkers), recent research suggests that the findings of benefit were more likely the result of methodological differences in studies and under-adjustment for confounding factors (e.g. personal characteristics, socioeconomic status) that relate to different drinking patterns within the population. It is advised that there is no overall positive health benefit for older adults from drinking.
New Zealand research supports the findings that there are differences in the characteristics of older drinkers who have moderate versus high-risk intakes. It is important to take into account of these differences when examining health outcomes from drinking. The former were more likely to be wealthier, whilst the latter were more likely to have lower levels of economic standards than other drinking profiles.
For more information, check this button RESEARCH ON OLDER NEW ZEALANDERS' ALCOHOL USE
| FACTSHEET: DRINKING IN THE PAST YEAR |
Hazardous drinking prevalence
The prevalence (%) of hazardous drinking in the total population in 2020/21 is shown below:
By age-group (years)
By ethnic group (total response)
By neighbourhood deprivation
Cost of alcohol to society
Costs outweigh revenue from alcohol tax
The revenue that the Government receives from alcohol taxes does not come close to matching the costs of alcohol-related harm to our society.
In 2020, alcohol contributed $1.193 billion of government revenue in the form of excise tax.In contrast, alcohol misuse is estimated to cost New Zealand society $7.85 billion each year. This includes costs resulting from lost productivity, unemployment, as well as justice, health, ACC, welfare costs, etc.
Costs of alcohol harm exceed that of other drug harm.
It is estimated that :
- 11% of all ACC claims are attributed to alcohol-related injuries.
- 18% of the New Zealand Police budget is spent on alcohol incidents.
Cost to productivity
Alcohol also results in major losses of productivity in workplaces and schools -
- In 2012/13, male drinkers (4%) were 1.6 times more likely to be absent from work or studies than female drinkers (2.5%); and
- In 2012/13, male drinkers (6.9%) were 1.4 times more likely to experience negative financial effects due to their drinking than female drinkers.
Every year, 147,500 adults take one or more days off work or school due to their alcohol use. A total of 84,400 adults have experienced harmful effects on their work, study or employment because of alcohol.
In 2012, 6% of adolescent drinkers report having their work or school affected in the last year due to alcohol. Among those students living in the most deprived areas, 8% report problems with work or school (exacerbating existing inequities in outcomes).
Our Drinking Environment
Our drinking landscape - alcohol is over-supplied and advertised heavily
Our drinking landscape has changed considerably over the last 30 years. We have seen dramatic increases in the number of places selling alcohol, the affordability and types of alcoholic products available, and use of innovative marketing strategies to advertise them.
Today, there are over 11,000 places that sell alcohol:
- 1641 club licences
- 6628 on-licences (bars, restaurants, café, etc)
- 2904 off-licences (9 auctioneer, 942 bottle stores, 92 brewers, 9 caterers, 58 chartered clubs, 41 complementary, 4 conveyances, 16 distillery, 3 function centres, 341 grocery store, 150 hotels, 128 other, 266 mail order, 51 restaurant, 327 supermarket, 233 taverns, 234 wine makers)
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A brief history of the liberalisation of our alcohol laws
AVAILABILITY
Beginning in 1989, new liquor laws increased the availability of alcohol across New Zealand - wine entered our supermarkets in 1989 and beer became available in supermarkets and grocery stores in 1999.
The number of places that sold alcohol more than doubled from to 6,300 in 1990 to 14,200 in 2009. Alcohol was prohibited from being sold in dairies in our new 2012 liquor laws.
Today, around 75% of all alcohol in New Zealand is sold from off-licences: 43% from bottle stores and 32% from supermarkets and grocery stores. Often at very cheap prices.
More liquor outlets are concentrated in low income suburbs than more socio-economically advantaged suburbs.
The increasingly availability of Ready to Drinks (RTDs) has had a huge impact on heavy drinking in New Zealand, particularly among young girls.
AFFORDABILITY
Alcohol has become more affordable over time. This is especially so for wine.
In total, New Zealanders spend around $5 billion every year on alcohol.
ADVERTISING
Until 1980, alcohol advertising on radio and television was regulated by law - only advertising of outlets and services was permitted, but not corporate or brand advertising.
In 1991, alcohol brand advertising was permitted on television after 9.00pm. However, to provide balance against alcohol industry advertising, free broadcasting time was to be allocated to health promotion messages. In 1992, alcohol advertising was permitted under self-regulation by the industry. For more information, click here.
Research in 2004 found that within prime-time television viewing in New Zealand, a scene depicting alcohol occurred every 9 minutes.
In 2009, it was estimated that $200,000 was spent each day advertising alcohol in New Zealand.
PURCHASE AGE
In 1999, the minimum legal age to purchase alcohol was reduced from 20 to 18 years.
Alcohol harm in New Zealand
Everything we care deeply about will start to improve when we reduce alcohol harm. With less alcohol harm, we can; improve our mental wellbeing, reduce suicide and family harm, have safer roads and communities, improve our physical health (e.g. fewer injuries and cancers) and lift employment and productivity. We can open up space to enable genuine conversations, trust and creativity.
As a result of substantial cost savings from reduced harm, every New Zealander stands to benefit. Our core services and sectors, such as ACC, police, health, welfare and justice will experience the greatest gains from reduced harm.
The possibilities are endless. Watch the video below and click the links to learn more.
Drinking in New Zealand
Past year drinking
In 2020/21, the prevalence of past-year drinking among New Zealand adults aged 15+ years was 78.5% (equating to 3,248,000 adults)
This prevalence of past-year drinking in 2020/21 was significantly lower than in 2019/20 (81.6%) and had returned to around the level of past-year drinking in 2011/12 (79.5%). Males (81.8%) were more likely to drink in the past-year than females (75.2%).
For more detail on past-year drinking, click here.
Hazardous drinking
The overall prevalence of, and inequities in, hazardous drinking in the total population has remained unchanged over many years. In 2020/21, around one in every five (or 19.9%) New Zealanders had a hazardous drinking pattern. Males (26.9%) were twice as likely as females (13.2%) to be hazardous drinkers.
The number of hazardous drinkers in the population equated to 824,000 adults aged 15+ years. This figure is likely to be conservative given that population-based surveys typically produce underestimates of alcohol consumption.
Around 1 in every 5 New Zealand adults has a hazardous drinking pattern that places them and/or others at risk of harm
Note: ‘Hazardous drinking’ refers to an established alcohol drinking pattern that carries a risk of harming the drinker’s physical or mental health or having harmful social effects on the drinker or others. It is determined by using the World Health Organisation's AUDIT checklist - a score of 8 or more indicates hazardous drinking.
Whilst 18 to 24 year olds maintain the highest prevalence of drinking in the country (total 34.9%; 41% for men, 28.5% for women), hazardous drinking patterns remain prevalent throughout older age groups in New Zealand, particularly among men.
Inequities in consumption persist - in 2020/21 Māori (33.2%) were more likely to be hazardous drinkers than non-Māori, especially for wāhine Māori (24.8%) who reported a hazardous drinking prevalence that was 1.9 times higher than non-Māori women. Māori men (42%) reported a hazardous drinking prevalence 1.6 times higher than non-Māori men.
For more detail on hazardous drinking, click here.
Heavy episodic drinking at least monthly
In 2020/21, 21.4% of adults aged 15+ reported consumption of six more or more drinks on one occasion, at least monthly.
More than 1 in every 5 New Zealand adults report monthly consumption of 6+ drinks in one occasion
Very little overall change was found in the prevalence of heavy episodic drinking at least monthly. Compared to 2019/20, a reduction was observed in heavy episodic drinking at least monthly among Māori women (from 28.7% in 2019/20 to 23.3% in 2020/21) and among New Zealand adults aged 45-54 years (30.0% to 24.6% monthly, and from 19.0% to 14.9% weekly). We need to see future surveys to determine real trends.
Heavy episodic drinking at least weekly
In 2020/21, 12.1% of New Zealand adults aged 15+ reported consumption of six or more drinks on one occasion, at least weekly.
Around 1 in every 8 New Zealand adults report weekly consumption of 6+ drinks in one occasion
Likewise, very little overall change was found in the prevalence of heavy episodic drinking at least weekly. Compared to 2019/20, a reduction was observed in heavy episodic drinking at least monthly among the age group of 45-54 years (19% in 2019/20 to 14.9% in 2020/21). We need to see future surveys to determine real trends. Again, we need to see future surveys to determine real trends.
Alcohol use disorders
There is a lack of information on the number of New Zealanders with a diagnosis of alcohol use disorders.
In 2006, it was estimated that just over 4% of the population in their lifetime will experience alcohol addiction and 11% will experience alcohol abuse.
In 2006, it was found that 4.2% of the population reported symptoms of alcohol abuse (2.6%) or dependence (1.3%) in the past year. This equates to over 100,000 New Zealanders.
Note
Every year (since 2011/12), the Ministry of Health carries out the largest survey into the health and well-being of New Zealanders. It is called the New Zealand Health Survey (NZHS).
The survey is designed to yield an annual sample size of approximately 14,000 adults aged 15 years and over. The data is collected at the respondents’ homes, with the interviewer entering responses directly into a laptop computer and/or asking the respondent to complete a section of the interview by themselves using the laptop computer. The 2020/21 survey, taking place during the pandemic, also used a computer-assisted video interviewing (CAVI) approach for a small sample of participants.
The NZHS 2020/21 represents the sample selected for the period September 2020 to August 2021. For some periods in 2020 and 2021, the survey was suspended in parts of New Zealand that had known community outbreaks of COVID-19. As a result, the sample size for 2020/21 is smaller than usual and the 95% confidence intervals around some estimates are wider than usual. The methodology report is available here.
In 2020/21, the final weighted response rate was 77%. The final sample was 9,709 adults aged 15 years and over.
Learn more here
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What we drinkRead More... |
Drinking in the past year |
Trends in hazardous drinking |
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Drinking trends in adolescents |
Drinking trends in older adults |
Covid-19 and NZ drinking |
