Russia: Beer production to grow 5%-7% in 2006 - forecast

Beer production will grow by 5%-7% in Russia in 2006, the same level as in 2005, Vyacheslav Mamontov, chairman of the executive committee of the Russian Brewers' Union, said at a press conference on Monday, February in Moscow, according to Interfax.

"The main reason behind the growth is the social and economic condition of most beer consumers," he said. "Beer consumption is higher, for example, in the central region, where people are better able to afford it. This figure is lower of course in the subsidized regions," he said.

Russians consumed an average of more than 60 liters of beer per person in 2005, the Brewers' Union said. However, Russia is still in 20th place in beer consumption in the world.

The slowdown in the growth of beer production is also tied to the government's excise policy, which puts restrictions on advertisements and increases transport costs, Viktor Pyatko, vice president of the Heineken group of companies, said at the press conference.

The Brewers' Union has prepared a social report on the brewing industry for the first time and has come up with an initiative to distribute stickers with information about the ban on beer sales to minors, Mamontov said. "These stickers will be put in places where beer is sold. We are planning to put up 50,000 stickers," he said. Beer is sold in more than 360,000 outlets, he said.

"Brewers never considered minors their target audience," Mamontov said. Russian brewers approved a Code of Honor a few years ago that sets out a number of restrictions for the sector. Russia produced 8.92 billion liters of beer in 2005, up 6.5% from the previous year, the Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) said.