The commitment brings the total amount invested into the manufacturing of the non-alcoholic stout to more than €60m since it was launched three years ago.
The added investment will enable St. James’s Gate to produce 176m pints of Guinness 0.0 per year, almost doubling the brewery's previous capacity.
According to the recently released Drinks Ireland report, non-alcoholic beer sales in Ireland grew by 18% last year, with Guinness 0.0 now available in 1,700 pubs across Ireland on draught.
Meanwhile, Guinness 0.0 draught experienced an almost 50% increase in volume sales between the end of February 2023 and the end of February 2024.
The news comes not long after Diageo CEO Debra Crew warned of the ‘challenging’ conditions within the drinks market. The group reported a $304m decline organic operating profit during its preliminary results for the 2024 fiscal year.
Diageo committed to Guinness 0.0
Commenting on the announcement, Aidan Crowe, beer operations director at Diageo, said that the investment served as further evidence of the drinks giant’s commitment to the Guinness 0.0 product and its faith in the potential of non-alcoholic beer category.
“It will allow us to double our capacity for Guinness 0.0 and meet the ever-growing demand from consumers as they move towards moderation and look for more choice when it comes to great tasting, premium non-alcohol products,” Crowe added.
“Guinness has a long history of innovation and delivering products of the highest quality, and we continue to do that through Guinness 0.0 – producing the same great taste, quality and premium experience that people have come to expect from a brand like Guinness, just without the alcohol. St. James’s Gate is the global hub of Guinness 0.0 production for markets around the world, and this investment goes a long way in supporting that work and continues the legacy of true innovation here in Dublin.”
In other news, Food Manufacture has published its latest food and drink trends report, summarising all the hottest topics from 2024 with insight from a slew of industry figures.
