Members of the Brewers Association of Serbia contributed with EUR 235 million, or 3.3 per cent of total budget revenue, to the budget of the Republic of Serbia via excise taxes, taxes, social reimbursements and contributions 2014.
In other words, in the course of that year, EUR0.30 per every litre of beer sold was allocated to the budget via excise taxes and VAT, according to the results of the “Economic Impact of the Brewing Industry in Serbia study conducted by auditing firm EY.
‘The brewing industry primarily operates responsibly towards the environment and the state. For us, sustainability is not present in figures only, but also among our key business priorities, as reflected in a wide range of initiatives related to responsible beer consumption and driving, cultural and educational activities. Beer producers – members of the Association – have strong self-regulation and strict terms and rules in place, stricter even than the law defines. These rules are combined in the Code at the industry level, which promotes legality, sincerity, honesty and good business customs. Our plan is to continue with the trend of strong growth, which will contribute to the strengthening of the Serbian economy, with responsibility and sustainability as the foundation of everything we do,” noted Mr Alexandros Daniilidis, President of the Brewers Association of Serbia.
The overall employment related to production in the brewing industry was 17.219 jobs in 2014, while each job in the production and distribution chain was related to nine new jobs. The brewing industry paid out EUR 21 million of gross salaries to its employees. In 2014, as much as EUR 129 million was allocated for local procurements, accounting for 92 per cent of total raw materials required for production. Between 2008 and 2014, the Brewers Association members invested EUR 236 million, including EUR 177 million in production. Despite good results, the industry encountered a highly negative trend in the last eight years.