China has held the top spot in beer consumption and production for the 20th consecutive year. According to data released by Drinktec, in 2024, production reached approximately 35.21 billion liters, a slight decrease from 35.56 billion liters the previous year. In China, per capita consumption is approximately 35 liters per year.

The rise of the beer industry in China (unstoppable between 1990 and 2014, rather unstable in the last decade) was likely fueled by the country's urbanization, which made product easier to obtain, especially for young people. As a result, Chinese breweries began to focus on margins rather than growth in volume or value, focusing primarily on premium products (Heineken's growth in this area is nearly 20%) and abandoning low-priced ones. In China too, non-alcoholic or low-alcohol beers have gained traction, driven by youth consumption.

An increasingly important aspect is packaging, which is focusing on cost reduction and the circular economy. CR Beer, for example, recycled 9.86 billion used glass bottles in 2024, saving 4,025,167 tons of glass raw materials and simultaneously reducing CO2 emissions by 4,107,965 tons.

The Chinese market is dominated by domestic brands such as CR Beer Snow, Tsingtao Brewery, and Yanjing Beer, which together account for 65% of the total market share. The best-selling foreign brand is Heineken (which holds a 40% stake in CR Beer Snow), followed by Carlsberg.