Bad karma

It’s either a case of bad karma or plain "headlining". According to some UK media, the acquisition of Bass Brewers by Interbrew could receive severe mauling from the Competition Commission as Competition Commission chiefs have asked for more details of the likely effect of Interbrew’s £ 2.3 billion deal on beer distribution in the UK. Pundits at the Sunday Telegraph argued that the chances of the deal being blocked were increasing sharply.
The Campaign for Real Ale, CAMRA, which had been asked to make a submission to the Competition Commission, has argued for a 10 year ban on Interbrew buying any pubs in the UK. Moreover, the brewer should be prevented from buying any other breweries or increasing its market share through brand acquisition or other trading arrangements..

White nights and all that

This summer, locals and Finns must have partied particularly hardy along St. Peterburg’s Neva river during the city’s famous White Nights. Well, how should we explain otherwise Baltika Brewery’s 61.6 % increase in beer sales to 5.7 million hl in the first eight months of 2000, from 3.5 million hl in the same period a year ago? Together with its subsidiaries, Baltika Don (910,000 hl) and Tula (940,000 hl), Baltika posted sales of 7.5 million hl of beer. According to company figures, from January to August 2000 Baltika controlled 20 % of the Russian beer market.
Baltika announced that in 2001 it would invest US$100 million to increase production capacityto 9 million hl. Strategic tasks include the acquisition or construction of plants in Siberia and the CIS..

Continued upswing

Despite a ban on advertising and higher excise taxes, the Polish beer market is regarded very positively. The Zywiec Group of Zywiec is market
leader. At the end of 1998, Zywiec Brewery, controlled by Heineken International, took over Brewpole, with the EB (El-Brewery), Warka and Lezajsk brands. Heineken has a 50 % stake and Harbin a 38.3 % shareholding in the Zywiec Group. The Group’s market share declined from 36.7 % at the end of 1999 to 31.0 % at the end of March 2000. Demand dropped, especially for EB beers.
On the other hand, Kompania Piwowarska SA, Poznan, incorporating the Tyskie and Lech breweries, increased market share from 22.7 to 27.6 % during the same period. Shareholders are Euro Agro Centrum from Poland and South African Breweries (SAB).1 million hl.2 - 6.5 %.8 %.

Holding hands

German brewers Veltins and Gebr. Maisel have announced an alliance affecting their respective product portfolios. It is believed that the product alliance will benefit the two brewers’ combined 20,000 allied gastronomic outlets and will provide synergies as concerns logistics and distribution. Following the alliance, Veltins (1999: turnover DM 381 million, output 2.35 million hl of beer, 495 employees) will be able to offer a premium wheat beer brand (Maisel), while Gebr. Maisel (1999: turnover DM 61 million, output 410,000 hl of beer, 218 employees) will be able to offer a national premium pils brand (Veltins) to its customers. In a separate move, Veltins bought a stake in Maisel with an option to double that stake and thus become majority stakeholder.

Despite a cool summer

.Le Coq Tartu Brewery reported beverage sales up 54 % for the eight months of 2000 to 294,000 hl. While output of beer grew 75 %, cider output rose 125 %. Beer output was 192,000 hl compared with 110,000 hl in the same period last year. Thus A.Le Coq brewery, which is located in the southern Estonian university town of Tartu, boosted its market share to over 30 percent of the market of Estonian-made beer in August. The Finnish brewer Olvi Oy has a majority stake in A.Le Coq with further stakes in the Latvian brewer Cesu Alus and the Lithuanian brewer Ragutis. Due to a drop in sales July and August (-19.9 % and -11.8 %), the nine-month beer output (Jan-Sept.) of all Estonian brewers totalled 749.000 hl, a drop of 2.1 % compared with the same period last year.

Border crossing

Because of the large differences in beer taxation between Denmark and Germany, as much as 20 % of Danish beer consumption is believed to be purchased south of the border and the trend is continuing.
As a result, Carlsberg deems it possible that beer consumption in Denmark may decline further. Nevertheless, for the twelve months ending 30 September 2000, the Carlsberg Group reported a net turnover of DKK 27,878 million, up 17 %, and an operating profit of DKK 2,355 million, up 41 % on the previous year. Including special items, profit before financials was DKK 2,793 million. Special items totalled DKK 438 million and included the sale
of shares in Grupo Cruzcampo, sale of shares in Tivoli, sale of properties and a write-down of brewery in China..

IPO to go ahead

On 1 December the Belgian brewer Interbrew went public on the Euronext exchange in Brussels by issuing 88.2 million shares (or 21 % of the company) at an asking price of € 30 to € 38. The offer had been more than four times subscribed. Interbrew’s shares opened at € 34. It is believed that the IPO will put up to € 3.3 billion into Interbrew’s coffers to be spent on continuing its acquisition programme. Interbrew’s market capitalisation will range between € 12.6 billion and € 16 billion. In 1999 Interbrew sold 55.7 million hl of beer world wide. In 2000 its output will have reached 80 million hl, including the UK brewers’ output acquired several months ago. Interbrew now ranks second behind Anheuser-Busch in the global brewers’ Top 10 ranking..

Coors closes brewery

Adolph Coors Co. announced it would close its money-losing brewery in Zaragoza by the end of this year, laying off 100 people. Chairman Peter Coors said that closing the plant was consistent with the company’s strategy to focus on resources that offer better growth potential and return. The US No. 3 brewer bought the Spanish brewery in 1994 but has suffered operating losses since in a highly competitive market.

Focus on new plants: Krombacher Brewery, Bernhard Schadeberg GmbH & Co., Kreuztal-Krombach "Innopas EBS" pasteurisation concept from KHS

With the "Innopas EBS" pasteuriser, money and energy is saved, as shown in a pilot project at Krombacher brewery.

With an output of 4.85 million hectoliter in 1999 and a turnover of DM 819 million, Krombacher brewery holds an important positon in the German beer market.

Three-shift Production

Six bottling lines are installed in Krombacher’s completely new bottling plant erected approximately 10 years ago. The production runs year round in a three-shift operation. Only slight sales fluctuations are noticeable during the summer months, so Krombacher maintains a nearly constantly high demand regardless of the season.

Variety of packagings

Flexibility is a must considering the variety of packagings offered by Krombacher. The 0.
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So it’s drinks now

In the old days it used to be "keep your customers satisfied". Now it’s also "keep the analysts happy". For years, actually since the 1997 merger of Guinness and Grand Metropolitan into Diageo, the jury (read the financial markets) has been undecided whether to think Diageo a success or not. When Guinness and Grand Metropolitan merged, the pundits commented: "two good concerns with an alcohol problem". But since then, Diageo has come full circle.
With the disposal of the Pillsbury food division (sold to General Mill, USA) and the planned IPO of Burger King (11,000 outlets world-wide and £202 million in profit), the new CEO, Paul Walsh (45), reaffirmed the strategic decision to refocus Diageo as a global beverage alcohol business.98 billion.5% - followed by UDV’s at 20..