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The German-Bavarian brewery Schlossle-Bier, opened 334 years ago in city Neu-Ulm, will cease operations at the end of December 2024 after ten years of unprofitable business in a row. The restaurant at the brewery will continue to receive visitors. The brewery's owner Christa Zoller told the Bild publication.
‘Beer consumption is falling and the prices of raw materials and energy are rising. We have been making losses in the brewing business for ten years,’ said Mrs Zoller. If in 2018 the brewery bottled 150 thousand litres of beer, now the production volume has decreased by a third - to 100 thousand litres per year.
According to the hostess, small production can not compete with large companies: ‘Prices would have to be almost twice as high for us to be able to buy new equipment again. But this is impossible to achieve on the market.’ Mrs Zoller also complained about bureaucratic difficulties in running the business.
The restaurant at the brewery still generates income and will not close with the production. Christa Zoller believes it should be preserved as ‘a place of beer culture’. Schlssle-Bier has been in operation since 1690 and is one of the oldest traditional breweries in Germany-Bavaria. The business has been owned by the Zoller family for over 135 years.
According to the German Federal Statistical Office, beer sales in 2023 fell by 4.5% year-on-year, i.e. by 394.2 million litres. As explained by Nina Gellinger from the Association of German Brewers, the decline in beer consumption is due to rising prices due to increased costs for raw materials, packaging and transporting the product.