Nearly half of young people opt for low and no

According to The Portman Group’s sixth annual survey in partnership with YouGov, young people are the biggest consumers of low and no alcohol alternatives.

Nearly half (44%) of the 2,197 participants considering themselves either an occasional or regular drinker of alcohol alternatives, compared to 31% in 2022.

Alcohol alternatives

The data also showed the younger generation was now the most sober age group overall, with 39% of 18–24-year-olds not drinking alcohol at all.

Moreover, 23% of those surveyed had also seen a decrease in their alcohol consumption as a result of low and no products, compared with 21% in 2022 while three quarters (75%) said they had at least tried a low and no alcohol alternative, compared to a third (33%) of non-drinkers.

For the sixth year in a row the most popular reasons to drink alcohol alternatives were to avoid drinking excessively at social events and being able to drive home.

Rise welcomed

Of those who could recall, UK consumers most often drank these products alternating with alcohol or on drink free days during the week and 83% first tried an alcohol alternative through a product which shared branding with an alcoholic product.

Portman Group CEO Matt Lambert said: “It is welcome to see a further rise in the popularity of low and no alcohol alternatives as well as further evidence of how they are an important tool to help UK drinkers, particularly younger adults, to drink responsibly.

“The availability of alcohol alternatives has never been more abundant, and we eagerly await the outcome of the recent UK Government consultation on low alcohol descriptors, which we hope will further facilitate the growth of the UK low and no alcohol market.”