Financial and ESG Analysis of the Beer Sector Pre- and Post-COVID-19 in Italy and Spain

Abstract

This study compares the analysis of the financial statements of the brewing sector in Italy and Spain due to its growth in both Mediterranean countries and its relationship with other sectors of activity of great importance in these countries. The web transparency of the sustainability indicators of the brewing sector in both countries is also analyzed, following the new regulatory framework, EU Directive 2022/2426, on sustainability information, in order to analyze, in an integrated way, the financial and sustainability information which they report for a sustainable development of the sector, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals and the European Green Deal. The methodology used involved compositional data, which are reliable at an accounting and statistical level; such data allow us to value the financial health of the sector and its relationship with the web exploration of the communication of its environmental, social, and corporate governance indicators. The results indicate a solvency of the sector in the short term, with poor margins, especially in the pandemic, which recovered in 2021 due to the sector’s resilience. On the other hand, there is a clear need to study the costs and margins of the sector in depth to improve the quality of the beers and to project the sector. The web analysis reveals acceptable transparency at the environmental level and poor transparency at the social and corporate governance level, with differences between the two countries and the population under study.