The Vietnamese beverage industry recorded a moderate volumetric decline by 1.9% in Q4 2020 mainly due to the declines in soft drinks and bulk/HOD water, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

GlobalData’s report, ‘Vietnam Beverages Consumption Trends and Forecasts Tracker, Q4 2020 (Dairy and Soy Drinks, Alcoholic Drinks, Soft Drinks and Hot Drinks)’ reveals that volume gains in hot drinks and dairy drinks nullified losses made by the other three sectors to some extent.

Hot drinks and diary drinks volumes recorded marginal gains in Q4 2020, while bulk/HOD water and soft drinks posted strong declines the same quarter on a Y-o-Y basis.

Overall soft drink volume fell despite the extraordinary growth in the syrups/squash category, followed by a strong growth in fruit powders during this quarter. The juice category also posted a healthy 9.4% gain in volumes in Q4 2020.

Tanumoy Chattopadhyay, Consumer Analyst at GlobalData, says: “While the pandemic has made consumers more health conscious, the uncertainty associated with it also led to an increased preference for ‘value-for-money’ products, a factor that may well have benefitted squash/syrups and fruit powders categories.”

Volumes in the hot drinks sector remained stable with moderate gains in hot coffee and other hot drinks, while hot tea remained largely unchanged. Dairy drink volumes posted moderate gains led by strong growth in drinking yogurt category, while condensed milk and grain, nut, rice, and seed milk alternative drinks categories posted notable gains.

Chattopadhyay concludes: “The Vietnamese economy is already on path to making a full recovery with Q4 2020 posting strong growth due to increase in manufacturing activities. Coupled with the government’s mass vaccination program and the easing of COVID-19 restrictions on business operations, volumes of beverages will see a resurgence in 2021.”