E-Malt.com Flash 26a. June 27

Poland: Royal Unibrew Polska streamlined for profitable growth

Scandinavia's second largest brewery business Danish based Royal Unibrew A/S announced on June 28 that it concentrates all Polish activities in Royal Unibrew Polska Sp. z o.o....more info

Brazil: Stella Artois® taps into the Brazilian beer market

InBev S.A. announced on June 28 the launch in Brazil of Stella Artois®, one of its three global flagship brands. Following the success the brand has experienced since its launch in Argentina in November last year, Stella Artois® will now also be produced at AmBev’s brewery in the state of São Paulo. Initially, it will be available on draught in select venues in the city of São Paulo, and later, in the second phase of the launch, it will be sold in its long-neck bottle.

AmBev master brewer, Gabriel Galembeck, spent the last few months traveling between São Paulo and Leuven, in Belgium, studying its recipe, its special brewing process, and the ritual which involves the pleasure of drinking a Stella Artois®. He brought to the Brazilian brewery the secret of Stella Artois®’ authentic flavor, which today is enjoyed in more than 80 countries.

The launch of Stella Artois® in Brazil is yet another step in achieving what the company announced on March 3, 2004, when Interbrew and AmBev revealed they were joining forces to form InBev: a pre-tax total of 140 million euro of annual commercial synergies by 2007.

Commenting on the event, Brent Willis, InBev’s Chief Commercial Officer, said: “InBev is not yet a year old, but already we are witnessing the collective strength of this exciting, new company, and the realization of its powerful synergies. ...more info

Canada: Labatt Breweries invests C$40 million in London

Labatt Breweries of Canada announced on June 28 a C$40 million (US$ 32.5 mln) investment in London, Ont., Labatt's hometown...more info

Belgium: Beer production increased by 11.2%, consumption fell by 2.3% in 2004

Beer production in Belgium increased by 11.2 % in 2004 compared to 2003 from 15.65 million hl to 17.41 million hl...more info

Australia: Australians drank less beer in 2004

Australians drank 109.9 litres of beer per person aged 15 or more in 2004, down from 114.6 litres in 2003, The Australian Bureau of Statistics announced on June 27. Altogether, 1,760 million litres was available to drink in the year to June 30, 2004, down 2.6 percent from 1,807 million litres a year earlier.

Full strength beer consumption fell to 80.1 litres per person in 2004, down from 85.9 litres a year in 2003, according to The Australian Bureau of Statistics. Mid-strength beer consumption increased slightly, to 15.5 litres a person from 13.8 litres a person. While, low strength beer consumption fell to 14.3 litres a person from 14.9 litres a person.

The shift is a result of an increase in the amount of wine available in Australia and a continued increase in the amount of pre-mixed spirit drinks available, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Malt News

Ukraine: Malt production already reached 230,600 metric tonnes this year

For the 11 months of the market year 2004-2005 (July 2004-May 2005) Ukraine produced about 230,600 metric tonnes of malt...more info

Barley News

Canada: Barley production is forecast to decrease by 7%

Based on Statistics Canada (STC) estimates, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) forecasted on June 28 that Canada’s barley production is to decrease by 7% due to lower seeded area and yields. Total supply, however, is projected to increase slightly, due to higher carry-in stocks resulting from the large production of lowquality barley in 2004-05. Exports are expected to increase by 25%, due to higher supplies of malting quality barley and less competition in overseas feed markets.

Carry-out stocks are expected to decrease by 16%. The average off-Board price of feed barley is forecast to be the same as 2004-05. Malting barley prices will be pressured by higher world production, with the CWB PRO for Special Select 2-row down by C$6/t from 2004-05 to C$174/t.

Hops News

New Zealand: Hops production in 2004

In 2004 New Zealand produced about 792.1 metric tonnes of hops from an area of 422 ha...more info