Poland, Warsaw: The Heineken group's Zywiec, which has long led the Polish beer market, and long-time runner up SABMiller's Kompania Piwowarska (KP) clashed over third-quarter sales, both claiming to be Poland's largest brewer, Interfax-Europe posted on October 22.

"For a long time, we have been closing the gap between us and the Zywiec group, and this quarter we have finally reached the No. 1 place on the Polish market," KP General Director Karl Lippert told reporters on Thursday. "Our market share exceeds 35%, depending on the methodology, and we sold some 320 mln liters" of beer in the third quarter.

Heineken's Zywiec replied that it is the market leader, as it currently holds a 37% market share, but it declined to come up with specific sales figures. "We have maintained the 37% market share, but we disclose the volume production data only for the full- and half-year periods," Zywiec President Nico Nusmeier told reporters, claiming the company will strive to take 40% of the market.

Kompania Piwowarska boosted third-quarter sales 16.2% to over 320 mln, which gives it a 37.4% share in the country's beer sale total of 855.6 mln liters, as reported by Polish brewers association Browary Polskie. The company aims to sell over 1 bln liters in 2004.

The company had a PLN 440 mln net profit in the fiscal year ended in March 2004. Zywiec lifted its net profit by two and half times to PLN 206.2 mln on sales up 8.4% to PLN 3.20 bln in 2003. In volume terms, Zywiec sold some 9.1 mln hectoliters (910 mln liters) in 2003, marking an 8% improvement from the year before.

24 October, 2004