German brewers have warned of a shortage of beer bottles this summer due to rising production costs and a lack of truck drivers.
The cost of beer continues to rise and German brewers are forced to pay up to 80% more for new glass bottles compared to a year ago, the BBC reported.
Rising energy prices are one of the main factors causing the shortage. The news follows a warning that the cost of German beer could rise by up to a third as rising energy costs weigh heavily on producers.
Energy prices are up 500% from a year earlier, a spokeswoman for the Federal Glass Industry Association said. German newspaper Bild.
“The current energy price crisis poses major challenges for the energy-intensive glass industry,” she said.
The lack of available truckers has exacerbated the shortage by making it more difficult to maintain supply chains.
Holger Eichele, head of the Association of German Brewers, told Bild: “Because there are no truckers, it is becoming more and more difficult for breweries and the beverage trade to maintain the supply chain. ‘supply.”
He described the situation as “extremely tense”, warning that the shortage could cause major problems during the summer months.
Shortages are most likely to hit smaller breweries the hardest, as larger companies tend to be supplied first.
Germany uses the “pfand” system for recycling bottles. When purchasing certain products, consumers pay a deposit (pfand) for the container, which they can recover on return.
Eichele urged German beer drinkers not to “hoard empty bottles in the basement” and to return empty beer bottles to retailers as soon as possible.
“The hotter the summer, the more difficult the situation can become,” he told the German newspaper.
The global energy market has been completely disrupted, leaving beverage companies facing soaring costs. Learn more about the global crisis here.
