Ireland kept on drinking during Covid — unlike most European states, where consumption fell

Pre-pandemic, a third of Ireland's drinking happened in bars and restaurants. When they shut, Irish intake only fell by 6% as we brought our drinking habit home, bucking the trend across most European countries.

Ireland and the UK were outliers in Europe during the early phase of the Covid-19 pandemic when alcohol consumption declined in the majority of 21 countries surveyed, a new study has found.

The research by the European Study Group on Alcohol use and Covid-19 found that while alcohol consumption fell in 19 European countries between April and July last year, consumption levels remained stable in Ireland and increased in the UK.