Sector Focus
Drink
Life, Vegan Life Live is a
plant-based food and lifestyle
exhibition.
» Genre: Food
» Vegan Life Live: “It's easy to
think that being a vegan is all
about what you can't have, but
at Vegan Life Live, we're here to
show you just how much is on
offer.”
DRINKS MARKET ANALYSIS
The drinks market is currently worth
around £65.2bn in the UK, with alcohol
and soft drinks industries being worth
£49bn and £16.2bn, respectively.
The current drinks market is affected
by a decrease in the amount of people
drinking alcohol. UK consumption
dropped from 12.6 litres of pure alcohol
a year per adult in 1990 to 11.4 litres in
2017 – a decline of almost 10 per cent.
It is predicted to fall even further by
2030, dipping to only 11 litres a year per
adult.
As a result of this, there has been a
rise in low and non-alocholic drinks
(NOLOs) specifically designed to
appeal to those who may want to drink
socially, but without getting drunk.
This has also given rise to premium
and craft soft drinks, not only as
alternatives to alcohol, but also as
mixers - meaning that whilst people
may be drinking less, they are paying
more to drink.
Whilst the market was affected
by Brexit, there are some seeds of
optimism, with those in the industry
focusing on planning for the future.
Bednall said the soft drinks market
has a number of improvements to make:
“The coffee/tea market is growing fast,
but that’s not reflected in the sales of
the more traditional food and beverage
sectors – in restaurants, hotels, pubs –
because they’ve failed to embrace the
opportunity of people wanting decent
soft drinks.”
As for the UK drinks events market,
there are not many dedicated drinks
events – Imbibe Live, an alcoholic
drinks show and the Tea, Coffee and
Soft Drinks Expo stand out.
26 — February
Food and Drink Expo
DRINKS TRENDS UNCORKED
NOLOs
Millennials and Generation Z continue
to influence the market, fuelling the
turn away from drinking alcohol; the
key trend for the UK drinks market
is ‘NOLOs’, meaning there will be
pubs, bars and restaurants that are
completely booze-free, in addition to
more high-end soft drinks.
Bottoms up
On the alcohol side, gin is continuing
to be popular, whilst dark spirits
(particularly Irish and American
whiskey) as well as aperitifs and
spritzes, are tipped to be the next big
trend. Food and drink matching beyond
wine extending into beer, cocktails and
alcohol-free drinks is also growing in
popularity.
Drinking for wellness
Other trends likely to appear within the
drinks market include wellness drinks
such as kombucha, vitamin-fortified
drinks and CBD-infused beverages, as
Generation Z and Millennials continue
to the market in health-conscious ways.
» Dates: 30 March-1 April 2020
» Venue: NEC Birmingham
» About: Organised by William
Reed, the Food and Drink
Expo is a biennial event for
the grocery, food service,
wholesale, manufacturing and
speciality retail markets.
» Genre: Food and Drink
» The Food and Drink Show:
“The event unites five co-
located shows under one
roof…Foodex, The Ingredients
Show, National Convenience
Show and Farm Shop & Deli
Show, to create an unmissable
proposition for progressive
food and drink professionals
across the industry.”
European Coffee, Tea and Soft Drinks
Expo
» Dates: 19-20 May 2020
» Venue: Olympia London
» About: Organised by Quinic
Events, it is the ‘definitive event’
for the professional service of
coffee, tea and soft drinks.
» Genre: Drink
» CEO of the Coffee, Tea and
Soft Drinks Expo, John
Bednall: “Bednall commented:
“We appeal to the entire
hospitality industry - we aren’t a
niche show.”
Imbibe Live
» Dates: 29-30 June 2020
» Venue: Olympia London
» About: Organised by Reed