South Africa: Bavaria Breweries expands locally
Bavaria Breweries of South Africa, the independent family-owned brewery which purchased the Bulmer's cider plant in Centurion in June 2004, has recently entered the local cider market, according to the Business Report of November 8.
The brewery started producing Crossbow Cider locally, which will be relaunched locally with new packaging this week.Craig Mackenzie, Bavaria Breweries SA's chief commercial officer stated last week that Crossbow Cider was being produced by Bavaria Beverages, a separate company with the same shareholders as Bavaria Breweries SA.
Bavaria produced as well bulk cider for Phoenix Brewery in Mauritius, he said. Bavaria Breweries SA now produced 90 % of its beer products locally and only imported the non-alcoholic Bavaria Malt beer and Bavaria 8.6, a speciality beer with a 7.9 % alcohol content.
Mackenzie affirmed it started brewing its flagship Bavaria Premium Pilsner locally in April and anticipated making an announcement soon on a co-packaging agreement involving certain in-house brands. The co-packaging agreement involved brewing a beer at its facilities for a company that was completely independent of Bavaria Breweries SA. The client would be responsible for the distribution and marketing of the product, he said.
"It the co-packaging agreement will bring good values and economies of scale into the business."Bavaria Breweries SA was on track to achieving its target to capture 20 % of the R1 billion a year local premium sector of the market within the next three to five years.
Its competitors in the premium beer market are Windhoek Lager and Amstel. The premium beer market was distinct from the super premium beer market where brands such as Heineken, Becks and Stella Artois, sold for between R100 and R200 a case, he said.
Mackenzie refused to comment on the beer volumes Bavaria Breweries SA was currently distributing into the local beer market, adding that this information was confidential. But, he confirmed Bavaria Breweries SA's exports were currently very small, comprising only about 5 % of its turnover, with products exported to Namibia, Botswana and Mozambique.
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