Foster’s beer division under pressure

Foster’s biggest brand, VB, is still the largest beer in Australia, by some margin, on both a volume and value basis (15.1 percent and 14.7 percent market share respectively).

However, VB remains in decline and the very strong growth Foster’s has enjoyed from its Pure Blonde brand since its launch in October 2004 is no longer sufficient to offset VB.

Pure Blonde was the first beer in Australia to be marketed as a low-carbohydrate yet full-strength beer.

For the quarter ending March 2010, VB fell 5.1 percent in value terms on a 12-month rolling growth measurement, and was down 8.4 percent in volume. Pure Blonde fell 1.5 percent in value terms reflecting a 4.2 percent decline in volume.