United Kingdom | Jump Ship Brewing, a start-up selling non-alcoholic beers, is suing BrewDog over claims that the multinational beer and pub firm could cause “confusion” and “harm” to its brand, media reported on 21 November.

Germany | Despite calls for a lower VAT rate on food in the catering industry to prevent further insolvencies, the coalition government, on 17 November, agreed that, as of January 2024, VAT will be hiked to 19 percent again, from currently 7 percent.

Russia | Mr Putin may deny it, but de-privatisation is definitely taking place. The court-mandated asset seizures of Baltika and Danone in July are not isolated cases. They are part of a broader strategy, impacting the oil and gas sector, infrastructure facilities, enterprises related to the military-industrial complex, the chemical industry, and agriculture. Both Russian and foreign businesses are affected.

United Kingdom | What a brouhaha: Speaking to media at the firm’s AGM in October, Innis & Gunn’s CEO Dougal Sharp said that “the firm is for sale”. He referred to a subsidiary, Flavourly, but some hacks thought it was the Scottish craft brewer itself. At the end of October, the brewer had to issue a statement, saying that Innis & Gunn has no plans to sell up.

United Kingdom | What do punters see in all those Mediterranean lagers? Thanks to their popularity, AB-InBev is expanding its UK beer portfolio with the release of a new 4.5 percent ABV Italian-style lager, Via Roma, exclusively at the supermarket chain Sainsbury’s.

Czech Republic | State-owned Budweiser Budvar entered into three collaborations this year: with craft brewer Brlo from Berlin, Thornbridge from Derbyshire, and most recently with Mikkeller from Copenhagen. The plan was to share the Czechs’ brewing knowledge with selected craft breweries.

United Kingdom | Drinks group Diageo warned that growth in operating profits will slow in the six months to the end of December, as cash-strapped customers in Latin America and the Caribbean are drinking less and trading down. Immediately, its shares dropped 16 percent, wiping some GBP 15 billion (USD 19 billion) from its market capitalisation.

Europe | Global brewers AB-InBev and Carlsberg played down worries among some investors that demand for weight-loss drugs may lead to a sharp drop in beer consumption, Reuters reported on 2 November.

Europe | Have brewers’ beer price hikes led to waning demand for the high-margin suds as consumers cut back to ease pressure on their wallets?

Europe | Both Heineken and Carlsberg partly blamed their exit from Russia for their sales declines in the third quarter this year.