The total volume of wine available for consumption in New Zealand rose in 2020, Stats NZ said today.
"The volume of wine available to the New Zealand market was up 4.3 percent in 2020, in contrast to falls in each of the previous two years," international trade manager Alasdair Allen said.
"This year's wine volume available to the domestic market is nearly 113 million litres, surpassing the previous high of 2017."
The volume of wine made from grapes rose 4.9 percent to 94 million litres, following falls of 2.7 percent in 2019, and 2.6 percent in 2018.
The volume of wine made from other fruit and vegetables (mostly cider) rose for the sixth year in a row, up 1.6 percent in 2020 to nearly 19 million litres.
| Year | Wine from other fruits and vegetables | Wine from grapes |
| 2005 | 4951623 | 84296198 |
| 2006 | 3769496 | 89973867 |
| 2007 | 4194185 | 87918065 |
| 2008 | 4499124 | 89721284 |
| 2009 | 5437267 | 89857825 |
| 2010 | 7246644 | 95367310 |
| 2011 | 7993604 | 89894580 |
| 2012 | 10447074 | 91771123 |
| 2013 | 15662248 | 90264093 |
| 2014 | 13883133 | 93684924 |
| 2015 | 14495010 | 89476654 |
| 2016 | 14850537 | 94047124 |
| 2017 | 16064427 | 94504970 |
| 2018 | 17018946 | 92056683 |
| 2019 | 18648388 | 89614197 |
| 2020 | 18946019 | 93982524 |
Of the total volume of wine available for consumption, 75 percent was produced in New Zealand and 25 percent was imported.
The total volume of alcoholic drinks available was little changed in 2020, up 0.8 percent, following a rise of 1.7 percent in 2019.
The total volume of beer available fell, while the total volume of spirits rose.
Total beer volume falls in 2020
The total volume of beer available fell 1.7 percent in 2020. The fall this year contrasted with rises of 1.6 percent in 2019, and 1.4 percent in 2018.
"The volume of beer available was down across most of the alcoholic content categories, with the exception of high-strength beer", Mr Allen said.
The volume of beer with an alcohol content of 4.35 percent to 5 percent fell 6.8 percent, following a fall of 1.7 percent in 2019.
Traditional mid-strength beer (2.5 percent to 4 percent alcohol) fell 1.2 percent, and low-strength beer (up to 2.5 percent alcohol) fell 8.1 percent.
These falls contrasted with a rise in the volume of high-strength beer (above 5 percent alcohol), up 16 percent on a year earlier, and following rises in each of the previous six years.
The volume of high-strength beer is over five times the volume in 2010, and now comprises over 15 percent of the total volume of beer available to the New Zealand market.
| Year | More than 5.0 percent | 4.35-5.0 percent | 2.5-4.35 percent | Up to 2.5 percent |
| 2005 | 24509981 | 68197265 | 219309609 | 3847603 |
| 2006 | 16518469 | 75098371 | 214096429 | 3776553 |
| 2007 | 9933725 | 94199677 | 204482974 | 3588403 |
| 2008 | 9085558 | 103404163 | 206682645 | 3317847 |
| 2009 | 6966630 | 103668817 | 192503317 | 3042653 |
| 2010 | 8767429 | 111543143 | 176058502 | 2978896 |
| 2011 | 8955880 | 115665676 | 172188337 | 2984089 |
| 2012 | 14467889 | 106078711 | 157048257 | 2339464 |
| 2013 | 12865944 | 116720213 | 155860752 | 3364087 |
| 2014 | 13572151 | 118805665 | 144311862 | 5600779 |
| 2015 | 18698775 | 118756552 | 134963356 | 9556111 |
| 2016 | 21859410 | 126302525 | 135027772 | 9221825 |
| 2017 | 29194745 | 131407733 | 120536185 | 7857950 |
| 2018 | 35270361 | 138585625 | 111780688 | 7374904 |
| 2019 | 39054232 | 136251843 | 115581228 | 6836478 |
| 2020 | 45309069 | 126928994 | 114186522 | 6280284 |
Volume of spirits and spirit-based drinks available continues to rise
The total volume of spirits (including spirit-based drinks) available for consumption rose 5.2 percent.
Spirit-based drinks, such as ready-to-drink or RTD beverages, rose 5.4 percent, and traditional spirits (such as whisky, gin, and vodka) rose 4.4 percent.
Standard drinks per person
The total volume of alcohol in alcoholic beverages available for consumption, expressed as the number of standard drinks available a day per person (aged 18 years and over), was little changed in 2020 - down 0.5 percent from 2019.
In 2020, there was enough alcohol available for each adult New Zealand resident (18 years and over) to drink the equivalent of 2.0 standard drinks a day, down from a peak of 2.2 in 2010.
"In 2010, an adult would have had, on average, about 800 standard drinks available to consume in a year. In 2020, that is down to about 720 a year". Mr Allen said.
Stats NZ compiles alcohol statistics from figures on alcoholic beverages produced for local consumption, on which duty is paid, and from figures on imports less re-exports. The statistics provide information on the volume of alcoholic beverages released to the domestic market, and therefore what is available for consumption, rather than actual consumption. The statistics for alcohol available per person are based on quarterly estimates of the resident population.
