After the excesses of the festive season, it is the resolution that many French people intend to take a month without alcohol!
Initially created in England in 2013, this "alcohol-free" January cure appeared in France last year. The benefits of sobriety are known and recalled for the occasion: improved sleep, weight loss, increased energy, etc. This initiative has nevertheless been much decried by politicians in 2020 and yet it seems to convince more and more followers for this second edition. With bars and restaurants closed, Dry January seems more accessible for many people. Although the official statistics will be known at the end of the month, the Try Dry application, created especially for the occasion, has already been downloaded 100,000 times. In England, the number of participants is expected to double compared to last year and reach 6.5 million participants in 2021 according to estimates by Alcohol Change UK.
This challenge, which is not intended to diabolise alcoholic beverages, also provides an opportunity to discover the alcohol-free alternatives that have flourished throughout 2020. Many companies in the sector have chosen to use Dry January to launch promotional operations. Among them, Heineken, with its alcohol-free beer, Heineken 0.0, which has already won over 1 million new buyers in 2020 in France. Retail chains are not to be outdone. Monoprix, for example, is offering an immediate 30% discount on all the alcohol-free beers in its catalogue.
In 2020, alcohol-free beer has gained in popularity. Will 2021 be the year of its consecration?