The study calculated that €36.86 in state revenue is generated across the economy for every euro of tax revenue directly associated with Portugal's beer sector in 2024, a modeled estimate of the sector's ripple effects on employment, suppliers, and the wider economy, not €36.86 in tax literally collected by the state for every euro a brewery pays. That's according to Cervejeiros de Portugal, the trade association representing the country's brewers, which commissioned the study from Nova School of Business and Economics (Nova SBE).

The study, "Impacto Socioeconómico do Setor Cervejeiro em Portugal" ("Socioeconomic Impact of the Beer Sector in Portugal"), was released on August 7, timed to International Beer Day. The multiplier figure covers revenue from personal income tax (IRS), corporate tax (IRC), and Social Security contributions, but excludes VAT.

The study estimated that the sector supports around 170,000 jobs and generates about €7.3 billion in economic activity, equivalent to roughly 2.5% of Portugal's GDP. It also calculated that every euro paid directly in wages by beer companies was associated with another €32.50 in direct, indirect, and induced wage effects across the economy, for a total of €2,776.2 million in wages tied to the sector.

On productivity, the association reported that the sector generated €130,612 in value added per worker in 2024, nearly three times the national average and close to double that of the broader beverage industry. It also said close to nine in ten sector workers hold permanent contracts, and that the share of workers with university degrees is above the national average.

Separately, the association said beer companies spent €545.21 million directly in Portugal in 2024, excluding imports, on goods and services from domestic suppliers. Cervejeiros de Portugal says Portugal has Europe's highest share of beer consumed outside the home, with about 70% sold through restaurants, hotels, and bars via the HoReCa channel.

Sales are up, and non-alcoholic beer is driving it

Cervejeiros de Portugal also released preliminary first-half 2026 figures alongside the study, reporting domestic market sales up 1.67% compared to the same period last year, driven largely by non-alcoholic beer. After growing 11.5% in 2025, the association said non-alcoholic sales rose about 12% and production rose nearly 17% in the first half of 2026, a trend that mirrors what's happening across the rest of Europe even as the overall market there struggles.

Portugal's first-half 2026 growth came against a weaker full-year 2025 European backdrop: Brewers of Europe's latest "European Beer Trends" report found EU-wide beer production fell 2.9% and consumption fell 3.2% in 2025. Non-alcoholic beer was the exception there too, its volumes up 5.87% in 2025 and more than 38% since 2020, putting it at roughly one in twelve beers consumed across the EU.