Germany's Oktoberfest, the world's largest beer festival, which has been canceled for two consecutive years due to the spread of the new coronavirus, will start in Munich in the south for the first time in three years on the 17th.

Oktoberfest, known as the world's largest beer festival, is held once a year in Munich, Bavaria, where many famous beer makers gather in Germany, where beer production is thriving.



It is said to have started in 1810, when it was held for the wedding of a prince of Bavaria at that time.

It was canceled for the second year in a row due to the spread of the new coronavirus, but it will be held for the first time in three years on the 17th.



At the beer hall, which is set up on a site of 42 hectares, which is about nine times the size of the Tokyo Dome, a large number of people, including locals wearing traditional costumes and tourists visiting from overseas, will gather at 7:00 pm Japan time on the 17th. We are gathering one after another before the opening.



In Germany, many of the infection control measures have been relaxed, and there are no restrictions on the number of visitors at the venue. I'm here.



A woman who visited from Australia said, "Oktoberfest was canceled due to the new corona, so I'm glad it's finally held. I can't wait for German beer."

Impact of Russia's invasion of Ukraine

Germany has more than 1,500 breweries, but many breweries have also been affected by Russia's military invasion of Ukraine.



A long-established beer company in eastern Germany is one of them.



Ukraine and Russia are the production areas for beer bottles that are commonly used in Germany, so it became difficult for this company to stably purchase bottles after the military invasion.



This forced us to temporarily suspend beer production, which affected our sales.



Furthermore, the president of this company is most concerned about rising energy prices.



Natural gas is required to boil the ingredients in the brewing process, and a large amount of electricity is consumed when using large machines that wash beer bottles.



In Germany, energy prices have risen sharply, partly due to a sharp cut in the supply of natural gas from Russia.



Many companies receive electricity and gas supplies on an annual basis, but this company's proposed rate for next year is about eight times higher than this year, about 1 million euros (140 million yen in Japanese yen). It is said that the payment will increase.



The president pointed out that it was an issue that would affect the survival of the company, and although he considered temporarily suspending production and relocating to a foreign country, he was unable to make a decision in order to maintain the employment of his employees, and he is racking his brain. .



President Fritsche said, "The government should find a way out of the energy crisis. No company can survive in this situation, so it is necessary for the government to reduce the burden on companies by setting caps on gas and electricity costs. "I'm complaining.

Soaring energy prices Concerns over economic recession

There are fears that high energy prices will spread across Germany's economy, Europe's largest.



Groups made up of small and medium-sized enterprises in Germany, including the beer industry, have received consultations from a wide range of industries, saying that the prices of electricity and gas have risen nearly eight to nine times and that they cannot afford to pay for them.



The group's economist Telton said: "There are more and more screams for help. It's worse than Covid-19. It's a shock wave across the economy that needs to be calmed down. It is important to support the government so that many companies do not go bankrupt.



In addition, the skyrocketing energy prices will spur inflation and dampen consumer spending. It announced an outlook for a decline of 0.3%.



We also expect inflation to reach around 11% between January and March next year.



If inflation hits double digits, it will be the first time in about 70 years.



On the 4th of this month, Prime Minister Scholz announced a huge amount of support measures for households worth 65 billion euros, or more than 9 trillion yen in Japanese yen. The German government is also struggling to respond.