Low-alcohol beer sales have risen higher in the UK than in other countries markets post-Brexit spurred on by low tax duties and brewers launching new products.

In recent years, sales of low-alcohol beer have doubled from 650,000 hectolitres in 2022 to almost 1.3m hectolitres in 2023, according to new data from the International Wine and Spirits Record (IWSR).

The UK is now the eighth-largest global market for sales in the low-strength beer, drinks with less than 3.5% alcohol volume category, up from 13th in 2022.

It is understood brands have taken advantage of the new post-Brexit changes to the alcohol duty system, which debuted in August 2023, and saw drinks with less than 3.5% ABV taxed at a lower rate than stronger alcohol.

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The new tax system sees brewers charged £21.01 a litre of alcohol between 3.5% and 8.5% ABV, while beers under this percentage are only £9.27 a litre and those under 1.2% ABV are not charged at all.

The new rules have been marked by a series of new products launches from prominent brewers, such as Guinness and Heineken, which have both developed new and revamped versions of their low and no-alcohol beer options in a bid to also cater to the growing trend of moderation and health-conscious consumers.

In July, data from NIQ showed that Guinness 0.0 off-trade sales has risen by almost 110% to £33.2 in the past year, overtaking Heineken to claim the title of the UK’s biggest alcohol-free beer.