Sales of beer in Bulgaria since the beginning of 2006 have driven by 30.6% year-on-year basis, local brewers said, according to Novinite, December 14.

A total of 242,111 million hectoliters of beer has been consumed in Bulgaria for January-November 2006, data shows revealing a sustainable trend for more beer drinking this year.

However, with winter coming and temperatures dropping consumption has logically dropped by some 29%. Bulgarians still get accustomed to dark ale, preferred in Western countries during wintertime, the Union of Brewers explained.

Zagorka, Kamenitza and Carlsberg enjoyed the strongest upward record of sales for the reported period.

Less than a month before end-year, local brewers stay upbeat the annual increase in beer sales would reach some 10-12%.

Edwin Botterman, chairman of Brau Union, the leader of the domestic beer market, says the company will brew more than 4.1 million hectolitres of beer this year, 17% more in terms of volume than last year, hence resuming the upward trend witnessed until 2004, Ziarul Financiar published on December 15.

Last year, Brau Union reported 1.4% lower sales after it restructured its brand portfolio. Still, the company's turnover went up by 20% to 158.6 million euros. "By 2009, we are will reach annual production of 5 million hectolitres," stated Botterman.

Part of the investment programme of around 85 million euros, Brau Union announced for the next three years, is also related to the expansion of production capacities.

Cerveceria y Malteria Quilmes, the country's biggest brewer, announced on December 13 a $150 million investment through 2007 for the construction of a plant of production in Tucumán and another of bottling in the province of Buenos Aires to enlarge its production capacity and to improve its chain of commercialization. This investment is a part of USD250 million investment for 2005/2007

This news was announced by the general manager of Cerveceria y Malteria Quilmes, Néstor del Campo, at the inauguration of a malting in Tres Arroyos, in the south of the province of Buenos Aires.

The company's malt plant in the Buenos Aires province duplicated production this year with a $28 million investment, said Mariano Botas, manager of Institutional Relations. The production increased from 95 up to 201 thousand tonnes per year, of which 50% will be exported to Chile, Bolivia, Uruguay, Paraguay and especially in Brazil.

For 2006-07, the production of barley in Canada is estimated to decrease by 20%, due to lower area and yields, resulting in a 16% decrease in supply, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada published on December 13.

Exports are forecast to fall by 23%, as higher malting barley exports only partly offset lower feed barley exports. Despite lower exports and domestic use, carry-out stocks are forecast to fall sharply.

The average off-Board feed barley price is projected to rise by C$35/t. The CWB PRO for No. 1 CW feed barley is C$177/t for Pool A and C$175/t for Pool B, up C$47/t and C$44/t, respectively, from 2005-06. The PRO for SS2R malting barley is C$203/t vs. C$171/t for 2005-06, due to lower exportable supplies from major competitors and strong import demand from China and the US.

Trading House "Belgospischeprom" set an opened buying tender for 40,000 tonnes of malting barley of the first class which meets the requirements of GOST 5060-86, informed tender department of TH.

Deadline of the tender is December, 29, 2006.

It should be mentioned that because of problems with barley quality of this year harvest organizations of the Republic could not make Government order concerning malting barley. Only 52,000 tonnes were prepared from 150,000 tonnes.