Indian Beer market is fairly small for its population size.
Even the per capita consumption of beer is very low in India compared.
India is also an oddity in the world of alcohol. Globally, milder forms of alcohol such as beer and wine dominate, e.g., beer accounts for 68% of all alcoholic beverages consumed and 46% of actual alcohol consumed worldwide. But in India it is the other way round, distilled spirits or liquors dominate with 63% of all alcoholic beverages consumed and over 90% of all actual alcohol consumed. This dominance of ‘hard’ liquor is a nightmare for any public health policy planner due to risks associated with the ‘harmful use of alcohol’.
This distortion due to the fact that in India, the excise policies do not really distinguish between a ‘hard’ drink like liquor and a mild alcoholic beverages like beer or wine for taxation and availability. Same tax structures, rules and regulations apply to both. Its perhaps goes back to the time when same companies produced liquor and beer and it helped to have same taxation and distribution rules. However, with globalization the rift between liquor and beer is becoming more and more visible, and hence this approach needs a reset.
The Brewers Association of India (BAI) represents India’s largest beer makers such as the United Breweries Limited (a Heineken company), AB InBev, and Carlsberg who, together, account for 85% of the beer sold in India.