Danish brewer Carlsberg announced on December, 17 its Russian Q4 2009 volumes will be higher than previously expected due to the fact that during the last months of 2009 the country’s distribution system has built a considerable stock of the brewer’s products as a reaction to the Russian State Duma’s decision to increase the beer excise duty by 200% from 1 January 2010.

The company estimates that the stock building will affect operating profit positively by approximately DKK300 mln and consequently, it upgrades its operating profit outlook for the year to 'at least DKK9.3 bln' compared to previous expectations of 'at least DKK9.0 bln'.

The stock building is estimated to have a negative impact on working capital of around DKK300 mln due to higher accounts receivables but in spite of this Carlsberg maintains free cash flow outlook of 'at least DKK6.5 bln'. The continued focus throughout the Group on improving cash flow is expected to off-set the negative working capital impact from the Russian stock building.

While the stock building has a positive one-off impact on profits in Q4 2009, the subsequent de-stocking in Q1 2010 will have a similarly negative one-off impact on operating profit. Likewise, the negative working capital effect in ...More Info

San Miguel Corporation and San Miguel Brewery Inc. announced on December, 18 that the Philippine beer subsidiary, a joint venture partnership with Kirin Holdings Company, Limited, has signed a Share Purchase Agreement with the parent company to acquire SMC’s international beer business subsidiary, San Miguel Brewing International Limited.

SMB will acquire all 100% of SMBIL with an enterprise value of US$300 million. The transaction will be funded by external debt and is expected to be completed sometime end-January 2010.

“By integrating both the domestic and international beer businesses, we can improve the growth and returns of the business as a whole and broaden SMB Inc.’s geographic participation, strengthening our brands and presence in the region,” said Ramon S. Ang, president of San Miguel Corporation.

Roberto N. Huang, president of SMB Inc., said, “With this acquisition, San Miguel Brewery is expanding its footprint to a bigger and broader platform in Southeast Asia and China, and potential access to Kirin’s platform in other developed and emerging markets in Asia.

“Additional brewing facilities overseas will offer greater operating flexibility for SMB’s operations,” Huang added “and provide real opportunity for enhancing the already solid performance of our domestic operations.”

The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) was SMC’s sole ...More Info

East African Breweries has lost a bid to appeal against a UK court ruling that stopped it from abandoning a beer sales contract with SABMiller’s subsidiary Tanzania Breweries for a stake in the rival Serengeti Breweries, Business Daily reported on December, 18.

Lord Justice Laws and Sir David Keene denied the Kenyan brewer permission to file the appeal on grounds that the Court of Appeal has no jurisdiction on the matter, in a ruling delivered at the Queen’s Bench division of the UK’s Commercial Court.

EABL had filed the notice of appeal on September 7 following an August ruling by the UK court that temporarily barred it from acquiring a stake in Serengeti until an ongoing arbitration between Diageo and SABMiller is concluded.

Diageo is the UK brewer with a major stake in EABL while SABMiller, the South African, brewer has a controlling stake in Tanzania Breweries Limited.

EABL has been ordered to pay SABMiller the costs of the suit even as the parties await a resumption of the arbitration early next year.

But the Kenyan brewer remained upbeat of finding a solution to the tussle saying it continues to look at other options.

“The application to appeal was just one part of ...More Info

Hite Brewery Co., South Korea's No. 1 brewer, said its beer exports to Japan hit an all-time high in the first 11 months of this year, thanks mainly to increasing popularity of its beer-flavored alcoholic beverages in the neighboring country, AsiaPulse reported on December, 18.

Hite’s shipments to Japan jumped 54.2 per cent from a year ago to 4.33 million cases in the January-November period. One case contains 24 350-milliliters cans.

In terms of value, the exports came to US$25.54 million, up 69.3 per cent from a year earlier, Hite Brewery said.

The company's market share in Japan has secured top place in the country's imported beer market. Imported beers in Japan include beer-like beverages, dubbed as the third-category beer, and low-malt "happoshu" beer.

Third-category beers, or those made of nonmalt ingredients, are widely popular in Japan for their low price and similar taste to traditional beers.

Hite Brewery's third-category beers including Prime Draft have played a major role in expanding its sales in Japan, the company said.

The company set a record high in 2008 when its shipments to Japan skyrocketed 119.7 per cent from a year ago.

World’s second-largest brewer SABMiller plc said earlier this week it would almost half its investments in Africa to $200million, Bloomberg reported on December, 15.

The media relations head of SABMiller, Nigel Fairbrass, said that excluding South Africa the company wants to invest $200 million in the black continent. “We are looking at how we can tap into the more affordable segments of the market,” he said.

“We hope to expand our operations in Africa where our strategy has been broadening our brand portfolio with premium and affordable offerings,” Mr Fairbrass added.

“In Africa, traditional beer continued to grow strongly, reflecting an intensified focus across the continent with product launches in more markets and innovative supply chain initiatives.”

Jonathan Oates, Manager of Media relations, added that SABMiller wants to increase production of raw materials to become self-sufficient in Tanzania by 2013. Today, SABMiller has to import 80 percent of its equipment.

In 2009 SABMiller invested $370 million in Africa.

Farmers should temper hopes for a revival in the malting barley market, despite the firmer Chinese demand which has lifted some price forecasts, Agrimoney.com posted on December, 18.

Australia's AWB lifted forecast returns from its 2009-10 Baudin/Gairdner malting barley pool by Aus$2 to Aus$269 a tonne.

The move came hours after the Canadian Wheat Board raised the forecast for its malting barley pool by Can$3 a tonne to up to Can$211 a tonne.

Both groups cited firm Chinese orders at a time when late season storms set back some Australian malting barley crops, with a heat wave dogging others.

There were "concerns generally about the volume of malting barley that will be available from Australia", AWB general manager commodities Mitch Morison said.

CWB said that the crop, while larger than last year, had "experienced several weather events that have caused downgrading".

"This will limit the availability of high quality malting barley from Australia."

However, Chinese buyers' eye for a bargain meant their orders looked likely to tumble if prices rose far.

"China has maintained steady purchases of malting barley but remains a very price-sensitive buyer," the board said.

"Many end users [are] willing to switch to lower-quality domestic and imported barley if prices for higher-quality imports rise."

The comments were ...More Info

The huge EU barley crop is in the bin, but export business is virtually impossible as Black Sea barley is available and cheap enough to prevent EU sales, experts said in a note at the beginning of December.

Export licence bookings since July 1 are 332,000 tons vs. 2.709 mln tons a year ago. 282,000 tons were booked in Germany, all or almost all used or intended for malting barley shipments to China. The conclusion is that there were almost no feed barley shipments. The best market for EU barley is intervention. Since the 1st of November offers can be submitted, and 1.610 mln tons have been offered so far. 72,000 tons have so far been approved.

The largest quantities were offered in Germany (653,700 tons), France (309,705 tons), Finland (120,282 tons), and Hungary (119,890 tons).

Intervention purchases will continue till May 31. It is not excluded that barley exports come back to life within a few months, because Russia and Ukraine have already sold a large part of their export surplus and may drop out of export markets respectively become uncompetitive, analysts said.

The barley stocks accumulated by the EU Commission are estimated now at 2.5 mln tons and could amount to 5.0 ...More Info

The situation in the Mercosur countries is uncertain, because the harvest in Argentina’s main barley areas has hardly begun, experts communicated earlier this month.

Brazil reports a reasonably good crop in Parana, but a rain-damaged crop in Rio Grande do Sul, where the Ambev maltings will need to bring in supplies from other regions, mostly Argentina.

Uruguay has also suffered from poor weather, it is said that local needs can be filled, but any export surplus is questionable.

Argentina is the all important producer in Mercosur. The country has suffered from bad droughts in many parts, but luckily not everywhere. Present crop estimates range from 1.3 to 1.6 mln tons.

Trade and industry are afraid of small grains and high proteins, which would affect the share of malting barley. Some early results were apparently of very poor quality. Argentinean maltsters need 1 mln tons, it remains to be seen what export surplus will be available, analysts said.

The Government of Canada is working to get more international buyers bidding on Canadian barley by investing in innovation through the Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre (CMBTC), MarketWire reported on December, 17.

Member of Parliament James Bezan (Selkirk-Interlake) announced the C$400,000 investment as part of the AgriMarketing program.

"Our Government is proud to support the Centre as they are key to opening new markets around the world for our innovative and competitive malting barley," said MP Bezan, on behalf of Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz. "This investment will help our farmers and food processors boost their bottom line by selling more of their safe, high-quality, world-class barley around the world."

This investment will help CMBTC evaluate and promote new varieties that Canadian growers can plant and export to new niche markets around the world. The project will target key markets in Taiwan and India and provide export and technical support for Canadian producers.

"Support from the Government of Canada is crucial to the development of new varieties, providing technical assistance to customers worldwide, and executing programs that highlight the quality attributes of Canadian malting barley to maltsters and brewers around the world," said Rob McCaig, CMBTC's Managing Director and Director of Brewing.

The CMBTC provides education, ...More Info

Dominik Szwajgier

J. Inst. Brew. 115(3), 243–252, 2009 ABSTRACT
Phenolic acids are widely distributed in foods and raw materials. They are easily absorbed by humans due to their simplicity. Once they enter the blood plasma, they act as antioxidants. Beer can be a rich source of phenolic acids in the diet. The aim of this study was to determine the concentrations of phenolic acids in two experimental worts and beers as well as in nine market beers (using HPLC-UV). An examination of the total antiradical activities of phenolic acids with in vitro model systems (using ABTS and DPPH free radicals), at the concentrations comparable to those detected in beers, was performed. Only low fractions of the main phenolic acids present in barley malt (ferulic, vanillic and p-coumaric acid) were detected in the experimental worts. Moreover, the concentrations of phenolic acids significantly decreased until the last steps of beer production. The main beer phenolic acids (vanillic and ferulic acid) exerted a lower share of total antiradical activity against both free radicals (calculated as the sum of the individual activities of all acids detected in beer) than the minor phenolic acids (caffeic, chlorogenic, o-coumaric, sinapic or syringic acid). The synergies, between individual phenolic acids in pairs, were also studied with in vitro model solutions using free radicals. The total antiradical activity of the compounds studied in pairs, was at the most as high as the sum of the antiradical activity of the individual phenolic acids, but in most cases it was considerably lower (i.e. no synergy was detected).

Key words:
antioxidant, beer, ferulic acid, phenolic acids, synergy,wort.
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