Rising beer consumption sparks competition

Domestic beer consumption has risen by an average of 20 per cent per year since 2003, reaching 2.7 billion litres last year, says the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

The 2004 development plan for the brewery industry projected beer consumption at 10 million litres per year in the Mekong Delta province of Bac Lieu, but by 2010, the provincial consumption had jumped to 40 million litres, with Soc Trang Province drinking 50 million litres and Can Tho City 70 million litres, noted the head of the ministry’s light industry department Phan Chi Dung.

To meet rising demand, Viet Nam Beer Joint Venture, which produces and bottles in Viet Nam such popular beer brands as Heineken, Foster and Tiger, has proposed to increase its production capacity by 100 million litres to 400 million per year, the ministry has said, noting that major domestic brewers Habeco and Sabeco have also stepped up production.

Beer imports weres also on the rise, with imports of popular brands like Heineken, Lucky, Corona, Budweiser and Bavaria reaching 40 million litres last year.

The increased number of products on the domestic market would give consumers more choice but also create intense competition between domestic and foreign brewers, Dung said.

The war for market share would be based on three factors: good products, good distribution and effective marketing, said Sabeco Trading Ltd Co director Van Thanh Liem. — VNS

Tags: Vietnam beer consumption

Posted by VBN on Feb 24 2011. Filed under Food & Beverage. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry