Beer and Nonalcoholic Beverages Industry

a branch of the food industry producing beer, nonalcoholic beverages, and bottled mineral water.

Beer brewing, an ancient process, was already well developed in the Middle Ages in several European countries, especially Germany and Czechoslovakia. In Rus’ a large group of Nov-gorodian tradesmen produced malt, hops, and beer. In the mid-19th century large breweries were built in Russia: these included the Staraia Bavaria Brewery and the Kalinkin Brewery in St. Petersburg, the Trekhgornyi Brewery in Moscow, and the Zhiguli Brewery in Samara. Breweries were also established in the 19th century in Kharkov and Kiev. In 1913 there were 1,016 breweries, producing about 100 million decaliters (dl) of beer. At the start of World War I (1914–18), many breweries were closed.

Beer production in the USSR revived in 1922. Production in 1928 was about 48 percent of the total output in 1913. In 1940, the number of large, modernized breweries was six times greater than the number of breweries in 1913, and production was 1.5 times as great. During the Great Patriotic War (1941–45), 133 breweries were partially or totally destroyed by the fascist German invaders. After the war, breweries were reopened, enlarged, and renovated.

There are large breweries in Moscow, Leningrad, Gorky, L’vov, Dnepropetrovsk, Donetsk, Alma-Ata, Karaganda, Kuibyshev, Baku, and Novosibirsk. The largest brewery, the Badaev Brewery in Moscow, produces 13.5 million dl annually. The per capita consumption of beer increased between 1965 and 1970: for example, in the Central Economic Region it rose from 15.2 to 17.2 l; in the Western Siberian Economic Region, from 7.4 to 16.4 l; in the Kazakhstan Economic Region, from 11.1 to 15.6 l; and in the Moldavian SSR from 6.9 to 12.5 l.

Tables 1 and 2 show the growth in the production and consumption of beer and nonalcoholic beverages in the USSR.

Kvass, a centuries-old beverage made from bread, is considered the Russian national drink. Kvass production was 48.8 million dl in 1967 and 75 million dl in 1973. The output of fruit drinks is growing rapidly. They accounted for more than 65 percent of the nonalcoholic beverages produced in 1972.

Large factories for bottling mineral water have been set up in various regions of the USSR. The Borzhomi Plant in the Georgian SSR produces more than 400 million bottles annually. In the Azerbaijan SSR, the plant in the city of Nakhichevan’ puts out 150 million bottles per year. The bottling plant in Stavropol’ Krai produces 250 million bottles of mineral water annually. The industry has experienced the introduction of new machinery and progressive technology, automation of production, and improved work organization.

Among other socialist countries, in 1973, Czechoslovakia produced 222.71 million dl of beer, the German Democratic Republic 192.47 million dl, and the Polish People’s Republic 127.87 million dl.

Among capitalist countries, beer production in 1972 was 1,647 million dl for the United States, 859 million dl for the Federal Republic of Germany, 577 million dl for Great Britain, and 351 million dl for Japan.