Pilsner Urquell ceases production in Russia

After ten years, the Czech brewer Plzeňský Prazdroj has terminated the licensed production of its Pilsner Urquell brand at the Russian brewery Kaluga. From January 2018, the beer will only be produced in the Czech city of Pilsen, reports the online portal idnes.cz.

Since early 2017, Pilsner Urquell has been owned by Japan’s brewer Asahi, when it bought a host of eastern European beer brands, which had previously belonged to SABMiller, from AB-InBev for USD 7.8 billion.

Although Asahi explained that the move was in line with its new global strategy for the brand, the truth is that the Kaluga brewery has also changed hands from SABMiller to AB-InBev.

Reportedly, Pilsner Urquell’s share of Kaluga’s total production never exceeded one percent. In the past, the beer was also produced in Tychy, Poland. However, this was a “marketing mistake”, an Asahi spokesperson said.

Plzeňský Prazdroj Group sales (million hl)