Non-alcoholic beer, 15 products compared

The non-alcoholic beer currently available in Italy is good and genuine, as well as having about half the calories compared to the traditional one. And it can be consumed without health contraindications, while driving, and during work activities requiring absolute sobriety. Our market survey on 15 products.

Non-alcoholic beer, market survey in Italy

The sampling conducted by GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade), as usual, consider:

• the main industrial brands,
• the  private label  of the GDO (Large Organized Distribution). To date only Coop, in this category,
• the MDD (Distributor Brand) of  discount (Eurospin, Lidl and Todis).

Non-alcoholic beer, how much alcohol?

The first distinction among the products on the market called 'non-alcoholic beer' is the alcohol content. In the absence of harmonized EU regulations, Italy relies on national legislation allowing the use of this denomination on beers with a volumetric alcohol content of less than 1.2%. (1)

The 15 beers non-alcoholic subject of sampling, as shown in the table at the bottom of the page, can be divided into two sub-categories:

• 9 beers are substantially alcohol-free (sometimes expressed as
• 6 beers instead contain a modest amount of alcohol (

Tasty beer without 'side effects'

The difference in alcohol content is significant for those who intend to avoid alcohol completely. Alcohol is prohibited for pregnant and breastfeeding women, as well as minors; it poses serious risks if consumed before driving, operating machinery, or performing any activity requiring full attention.

Excessive consumption and prolonged alcohol consumption is also associated with a higher risk of onset of various forms of cancer (breast, intestine, liver, mouth and throat, esophagus, and stomach), as recalled by the  World Cancer Research Fund. (2)

Non-alcoholic beer, half the calories

Another adverse consequence of habitual alcohol consumption is the risk of overweight and obesity. Alcohol alone (net of other ingredients) provides 7.1 kcal/g. These are 'empty' calories, meaning devoid of any nutritional value.

Non-alcoholic beers have on average half the calories compared to regular ones (e.g., Heineken 0.0, 21 Kcal/100 ml, compared to classic Heineken, 42 Kcal/100 ml). The energy content of the 15 beers examined ranges from 14 (Poretti) to 26 Kcal/100 ml (Clausthaler).

Nutritional table, the transparency that is missing

The nutritional table is mandatory on the label of all beverages with an alcohol content

Sugars partially remain (from

Ingredients, aromas and additives

The ingredient list always deserves attention, even on non-alcoholic beer labels. Some products contain ‘natural aromas’, definitely preferable compared to generic ‘aromas’ (instead of chemical synthesis).

Citric acid and glucose syrup are sometimes used to balance the flavor, which is then stabilized by pasteurization (as is customary in industrial beers, which differ from craft beers that are always ‘raw’).

The vast majority of labels of non-alcoholic beers are classified as  clean label, unlike non-alcoholic aperitifs instead full of additives, as seen in our previous investigation.

The tasting

The tasting test, entrusted to a  panel of non-expert tasters, shows how most of the 15 non-alcoholic beers examined have nothing to envy from the ordinary ones. The favored products, in our humble opinion, are:

– Wieninger Bier Weizen No alcohol, for the best flavor. A German weiss beer, available in smaller distribution channels (e.g., Tigre supermarkets in Rome) and sometimes at Eataly,

– Best Bräu non-alcoholic, Polish product sold by Eurospin. Winning in quality/price ratio, albeit with defective and hard-to-read printing on the cans.

Italian beer, laws to be redone

Non-alcoholic beer – a real  must in Spain – begins to gain ground also in Italy. Assobirra notes a  trend dynamic, (4) which is confirmed in the growing supply.

The beer  Made in Italy is however discriminated against by the same Italian legislator:

• for half a century, the Italian beer law has imposed only on national producers the respect of a parameter (malt concentration, expressed in degrees Plato) which forced them to face higher costs and pay more excise taxes (anchored precisely to degrees Plato, in Italy) compared to foreign competitors (5,6),
• Still, producers of non-alcoholic beer are forced to dispose of the alcohol extracted during production as waste. Instead of allowing its reuse, in the food chain rather than in others (e.g., chemical, pharmaceutical). Despite proclamations about the circular economy and support for business competitiveness, food waste is mandated  ex lege.

Alcohol, a cultural stigma

Italy has already distinguished itself for a lively controversy against recent European reforms that introduced the possibility of producing totally dealcoholized wines. Unfortunately without understanding the high growth potential of innovative products that can supplement the income of farmers and businesses.

Market opportunities offered by zero-alcohol beverages deserve attention instead, as alternative consumption occasions (also at work, before driving, or by vulnerable segments of the population) and safeguarding collective health, without giving up quality productions.

Marta Strinati and Dario Dongo

Notes

(1) Law August 16, 1962, no. 1354 reads in article 2, paragraph 1:
‘The denomination "non-alcoholic beer" is reserved for the product with Plato degree not lower than 3 and not higher than 8 and with volumetric alcohol content not exceeding 1.2%‘. 
https://www.normattiva.it/uri-res/N2Ls?urn:nir:stato:legge:1962-08-16;1354

(2) Alcohol and cancer risk. World Cancer Research Fund https://www.wcrf-uk.org/preventing-cancer/what-can-increase-your-risk-of-cancer/alcohol-and-cancer-risk/

(3) Dario Dongo, Andrea Adelmo Della Penna. Non-alcoholic beer, health and well-being. Questionnaire for a thesis. Food Times. 22.3.20

(4) According to the 2021 Annual Report by AssoBirra (page 61), ‘In 2021, per capita beer consumption was even higher than in the previous two years, marking 35.2 liters against 34.9 in 2019 and just 31.7 in 2020. Among beers, the rise of special beers stands out: 17.82% of the total, compared to 14.52% in 2020, to the detriment of Lagers (81.29% against 84.18%) while low-no alcohol beers show a small but significant growth (1.43% against 1.30%), expected protagonists of the next trend‘.  https://www.assobirra.it/annual-report-assobirra/

(5) Marta Strinati. Italian beer facing low-cost competition. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 24.9.14

(6) Dario Dongo. Italian beer, new regulations. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 20.3.2018