Where's the Booze?

If there is one thing you should know about Venezuelans is that they love their beer. In fact, it is the most consumed alcoholic beverage in the country, but this can all change by the beginning of next month. Local breweries have announced that they have virtually run out of beer and have no hope of replenishing their inventory.

Cerveza Zulia - Venezuelan beer

Due to the strict exchange restrictions, it has been very difficult for breweries to obtain the imported raw material needed to make beer, which includes barley and malt. In an attempt to control high inflation, the government has forced companies to use dollars when conducting international business. The problem is that these brewing companies cannot afford to get dollars in order to pay foreign suppliers. U.S. dollars have become a commodity in and of itself for companies that are already in the hole more than $200 million with foreign suppliers.

Cerveza Polar

Chances are that these companies can find U.S. dollars in the black market. However, the black market is not a charity organization so if they are going to exchange your bolivares (local currency) for dollars, they are going to charge you three times more than the official rate. The brewing companies simply cannot afford to do business with the black market and the government does not have enough dollars to go around. Government-owned companies and a select few private companies are allowed to purchase dollars from the government for a fraction of the costs, but no such break has been given to brewing companies.

To add insult to injury, Fray Roa, the general director of the Venezuelan Federation of Liquor Producers, was arrested this past Friday for going on record saying that the government was responsible for the current beer crisis. He also called for a "zero-hour" planned protest to denounce the government policies that have contributed to the shortages. The government's reaction sent a clear message to all: this kind of public attack against the government will not be tolerated.

Many of you may be thinking: So what if there is no beer in the country? In a time of economic crisis, should people be inebriated anyways? Well, the problem does not lie in people getting their beer fix. The uneasiness of the situation is that if the brewing companies have to shut their doors, as many as half a million people will lose their jobs. Venezuela is simply in no condition to allow this to happen without causing a major ruckus.