Great British Beer Festival, Earls Court, London, August 3-7 2010
- New research shows 34% of men and 29% of women incorrectly believe that beer has more calories than other alcoholic drinks
- Swapping wine for beer for a single week saves as many calories as a half hour jog!*
- Leading experts to speak out during Great British Beer Festival on how beer can help you lose weight
CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale, and the Beer Academy, have today come together to highlight to UK consumers that beer, when drunk in moderation, can help you lose weight, cut alcohol consumption, and more generally, help supplement a healthy lifestyle.
New research released during CAMRA's Great British Beer Festival at Earls Court, London (August 3-7) where over 500 British real ales are currently being showcased, shows that 34% of men and 29% of women incorrectly believe that beer contains more calories than other alcoholic drinks. (ICM interviewed a random sample of 2004 adults aged 18+ online between 26th-28th February 2010)
Today's new research released by CAMRA follows on from a groundbreaking report by the Beer Academy entitled 'Beer the Natural Choice?', and authored by Isla Whitcroft, a leading health journalist. The report is a broad, eye opening examination of the health giving properties of beer, and its composition as a natural product. In a calorie comparison of beer versus other alcoholic drinks, the report found that-
| Half pint of 3.8% Bitter (284ml) |
Medium sized glass of 12% red wine (175ml) |
Medium sized glass of 12% white wine (175ml) |
Bottle of 5% 'alcopop' (275ml) |
| 85 calories |
119 calories |
131 calories |
179 calories |
| 1.1 ALCOHOLIC UNITS |
2.1 ALCOHOLIC UNITS |
2.1 ALCOHOLIC UNITS |
1.4 ALCOHOLIC UNITS |
Professor Charlie Bamforth, renowned technical brewing expert, praised today's findings. He said:
'For years beer has been blighted by a reputation for being more fattening than other alcoholic drinks when in reality the exact opposite is true. The major source of calories in any alcoholic drink is the alcohol itself, and because beer is the drinks category with the lowest average alcohol content it is also lowest in calories. Beer also contains no fat or cholesterol and very few free sugars. So for someone looking to lose weight, swapping their glass of wine for a beer every day would not only reduce their weekly alcohol intake by seven units - but also cut out more calories than are burned off during a typical 30 minute jog!'
Speaking at the Great British Beer Festival, Mike Benner, CAMRA Chief Executive, reiterated the impact of these findings. He said:
'It is great news to see the myth of the beer belly finally laid to rest. The main message we are putting forward today is that as a low alcohol drink, beer can supplement a healthy lifestyle if consumed in a responsible manner. And as a quality product, one need only visit the Great British Beer Festival this week to see that a number of beers, whilst low in alcohol, are still packed with a fantastic amount of flavour. After all, two of the last four Champion Beer of Britain winners have been Milds, traditionally weighing in at around 3% ABV, therefore in no way does less alcohol translate into less flavour.'
The Great British Beer Festival will be showcasing a number of brews - encompassing a wide variety of different beer styles - throughout the week that enjoy a particularly low calorie content. These include-
- Mild- Harvey's, Sussex XX Mild Ale (Lewes, Sussex) at 3% ABV
- Bitter- Fuller's, Chiswick Bitter (Chiswick, London) at 3.5% ABV
- Best Bitter- Timothy Taylor, Golden Best (Keighley, West Yorkshire) at 3.5% ABV
- Golden ale- Robinson's, Bizzy Bee (Stockport, Cheshire) at 3.5% ABV
- IPA- Nethergate, IPA (Pentlow, Essex) at 3.5% ABV
Radio/TV call- In a bid to further the discussion surrounding how beer can be part of a healthy lifestyle, brewing experts, biochemists and consumers are on hand to discuss today's research at the Great British Beer Festival. To arrange an interview, please contact the Great British Beer Festival on 020 7244 3925 or at jon.howard@camra.org.uk
ENDS
Notes to editors:
*Based on Food Standards Agency Calorie Calculator- www.eatwell.gov.uk
There are now over 750 breweries across the UK, brewing more than 2,500 different varieties of beer, from light, hoppy bitters and golden ales, to dark, malty porters and stouts, among countless other styles.
The Great British Beer Festival promotes responsible drinking, and will be using third pint measures at the event to give Festival-goers the opportunity to try new beer styles and limit their consumption. The Festival will be calling on more pubs to adopt the measure in response to consumer demand.
Images of the Great British Beer Festival are available on demand, and can be obtained by contacting CAMRA's Jon Howard at
For further information:
CAMRA Great British Beer Festival Press Office, 020 7244 3925
Jon Howard, CAMRA press officer, 07939 425471
Mike Benner, CAMRA Chief Executive, 07971 591224
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