Demand for low and non-alcohol beers has grown in recent years across the Middle East, according to market research firm Euromonitor International.

Euromonitor Internation drinks analyst Spiros Malandrakis said health concerns and drink-driving worries had helped foster growth across the beverage categories.

InterContinental Dubai Festival City F&B manager Kieron Hunt said: “The appeal of these products is certainly recognised through the awareness of health benefits.

“Another key reason for a change in consumption would be the marketing and advertising used by breweries and spirit houses, and their appeal to the female market in particular, which has seen the highest increase.”

The Euromonitor International report featured on drinks website just-drinks.com, noted that in the UAE advertising restrictions on alcohol products, allowed non-alcoholic beers to constitute the vast majority of sales within the non-alcohol category.

“Non-alcoholic beers are riding the westernisation bandwagon while overcoming religious barriers,” commented the report. “With per capita consumption standing at 4.4 litres and rising, there is still room for impressive growth in the country.”

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Euromonitor International also claimed the low and non-alcohol beer category would undergo a 5% compound annual growth rate in volume terms over the next five years.

While growing in popularity, both categories were dwarfed in comparison to the higher alcoholic varieties with low and non-alcohol beer accounting for sales of 29.5m hectolitres worldwide in 2008; total beer volumes for the same period reached 1.85bn hectolitres.

In Iran the low and non-alcohol beer categories accounted for sales of 2.6m hectolitres in 2008 and recent domestic media coverage in the country focusing on the alleged health benefits of non-alcoholic beer helped raise the image of the products.

“[The media coverage] along with government restrictions on the sales of cola carbonates suggest a positive outlook for the category over the short and medium term,” stated the report.

InterContinental’s Hunt added: “Beverages categorised as low in alcohol content have seen a slight increase in sales, however not to the level that would indicate a shift in consumer preference.”