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Germany’s main rail company Deutsche Bahn is to stop serving draught beer in its on-board bistros, one of several changes to long-distance catering services announced on Thursday.
A pilot project testing cashless catering is also planned between February and May.
Beer is the most popular drink category on board Germany’s long-distance trains, along with coffee.
However, Deutsche Bahn says passengers are increasingly demanding a wide range of beverages, especially bottled beers. The share of draught beer has fallen from 50% to around 15% over the past ten years.
From February, Deutsche Bahn plans to expand its range of bottled beers. “In future, guests will be able to choose between seven different beers in the standard range, plus an additional special-edition beer.”
Half of all payments in the on-board catering service are now cashless. After evaluating the test phase, Deutsche Bahn will decide whether to expand its cashless catering service.
An additional 100 full-time positions are to be created in on-board catering. Deutsche Bahn says more staff will be deployed in areas where demand is expected to be high.
There are currently 3,200 employees in on-board catering, while 410 on-board bistros and restaurants are in operation every day across Germany’s inter-city rail network, according to the rail operator.
Deutsche Bahn says its sales in on-board catering in 2023 were worth around €110 million ($115,5 million). The best-selling drink was cappuccino. The best-selling food was warm ham and cheese baguette.
