Drinks industry consolidation aptly took on greater importance this
week as Diageo announced tough trading conditions in a sign that
cost-savings and pricing will be crucial, reports Chris
Mercer.
Food makers and ingredients firms will benefit from a new European
platform that will prioritise research and development initiatives
to keep the €800 billion food and drink industry
competitive,reports Lindsey Partos.
Constellation is planning to launch newly acquired Robert Mondavi
wines across Europe after it helps sales soar in the US, and Pernod
Ricard finally has Allied Domecq in its sights, reports Chris
Mercer.
Militant French vintners may be grabbing the headlines, yet new
research claims small-to-medium wineries in Australia are also on
the track to financial ruin, as the big boys march calmly on,
reports Chris Mercer.
The European Commission has approved Pernod Ricard's bid for Allied
Domecq, but will force the firm to dump extra whiskey brands and
distribution agreements before a deal goes through, reports
Chris Mercer.
Coca-Cola can no longer negotiate exclusive supply deals for its
fizzy soft drinks in the EU and must open its coolers to rival
brands as the European Commission tries to improve competition,
reports Chris Mercer.
Proposals to slash EU sugar prices make sense, but jobs will
continue to go in UK food and drink firms unless bolder moves to
abolish quota systems are introduced, says the UK Soft Drinks
Association to Chris Mercer.
Juice maker Witmark-Ukraine has announced it expects to increase
sales by 50 per cent in 2005 as consumer demand for juice in the
CIS continues to soar, yet rivals are looming, reports Angela
Drujinina.
The consortium led by Constellation Brands has pulled out of the
race to buy Allied Domecq leaving Pernod Ricard as the only bidder
in the build up to next week's shareholder vote.
Japanese probiotics leader Yakult and the Kirin brewing and
beverage group have agreed to jointly develop new functional foods
for the domestic market and share manufacturing and distribution
resources to increase efficiency, writes...
Expectations of a fall in global coffee supplies of coffee will
keep up pressure on market prices, as fresh figures indicate world
coffee production will drop in 2005/06.
Carlsberg is close to signing a new joint venture deal in China,
says the country's official news agency, as the major brewers take
up position on their East Asian nest eggs, writes Chris
Mercer.
Masked militants decimated a wine distillery in southern France
only hours after thousands of vintners protested through the
streets of Nimes over the intense pressure on the French wine
industry, reports Chris Mercer from Nimes.
Foster's has Aussie firm Southcorp in the palm of its hand after
increasing its stake in the wine company to more than 90 per cent,
reports Chris Mercer.
Teamsters unions at seven Coca-Cola bottling anddistribution
facilities in Connecticut and the Los Angeles area in US plan to
continue their strike today over wages and health care benefits,
reports Ahmed ElAmin.
Acquisitions have helped Wolverhampton and Dudley Breweries to a
solid sales rise in the UK, the country recently named as one of
the world's toughest beer markets by Goldman Sachs, reports
Chris Mercer.
SABMiller, buoyed by strong results in South Africa and Eastern
Europe, said a solid performance from Miller Lite also helped it to
hold off the black clouds hovering over America's beer sector,
despite warning of tough trading...
The first ever survey of research and development (R&D)
personnel across all industrial sectors in Europe reveals most
participants predict there will be little change in their
companies' R&D investment levels over the...
Foster's looks set to finally swallow fellow Aussie wine firm
Southcorp after taking a 50.9 per cent voting majority. Elsewhere,
the Constellation consortium appears to be struggling to get the
cash for an offer for Allied Domecq...
Falling beer markets across Western Europe have claimed Carlsberg
as their latest victim, handing the Danish brewer heavy losses in
its first quarter despite strong performances in Russia and Asia,
reports Chris Mercer.
Two of the world's biggest brewers have announced plans to expand
in Russia, yet competition will intensify as an outdoor drinking
ban and slow economic progress threaten the market's blistering
growth, writes Chris Mercer.
PespiCo has thrust further into Europe's strongly emerging juice
market through German firm Punica as the scramble to get ahead in
healthy soft drinks sector intensifies, reports Chris
Mercer.
An EU Commission committee has promised extra money to help French
wine makers distil more than a million hectolitres of quality wine
into undrinkable industrial alcohol after the French government
promised to rip up vines and make...
Constellation Brands has confirmed it approached Allied Domecq on
Wednesday as part of a larger consortium to discuss the terms of a
possible counter bid to Pernod Ricard, reports Chris Mercer.
Wolverhampton and Dudley Breweries has signed a deal to buy UK
rival Jennings for £45.8 million as the firm defies protestors to
capture more of Britain's resurgent real ale sector, reports
Chris Mercer.
The battle for Allied Domecq looks set to begin with news that
Constellation Brands, the world's biggest wine company, is
considering launching a rival bid to the £7.4 billion offer tabled
by Pernod Ricard, reports Chris Mercer.
Foster's look set to win its long battle to buy Australian winery
Southcorp after grinding down board members' resistance to a deal
that could spawn a formidable 'brand Australia' on the world wine
market, reports...
Coca-Cola will gain the right to sell Evian in the US after buying
out Danone from their joint venture, while Czech brewer Budejovicky
Budvar scores another victory in the Budweiser trademark war with
Anheuser Busch, reports Chris...
Allied Domecq has advised shareholders to accept a bid for the
company by Pernod-Ricard worth £7.4 billion, as the latter prepares
to shed brands to form the world's largest wine and spirits group,
reports Chris Mercer.
Pernod Ricard and Fortune Brands may be planning a formal takeover
bid for the world's second biggest spirits firm, Allied Domecq, as
soon as Thursday, according to a report in the UK's Financial
Times newspaper, writes...
Global brewing giants SABMiller and Anheuser Busch have increased
their stakes in Chinese brewers by taking advantage of China's
crawl towards a more liberal market, reports Chris Mercer.
Knocked by an economic slowdown and the strength of the Euro
against the US dollar, growth in turnover for the European food and
drink industry rose by a 1.9 per cent wisp from 2002 to 2003,
concludes a new report from the US government,...
The EU's main wine-producing countries, led by France and Italy,
this week torpedoed discussions to raise the minimum excise duty on
all alcoholic drinks, fearing a domestic backlash from vintners,
reports Chris Mercer.
Iconic soft drinks firm Coca-Cola has confirmed it is in talks with
world football association Fifa to secure a new long-term
sponsorship deal as the firm lays the foundations for marketing its
brands more aggressively, reports Chris...
A fresh round of price cuts from the two biggest UK food retailers
increases the pressure on suppliers' margins and intensifies
competition between own-label and branded producers, forcing them
to find new ways to adapt, writes...
New Zealand dairy co-operative Fonterra announced today that it has
pulled out of the three month bidding war to buy National Foods,
crowning San Miguel the new owner of Australia's largest publicly
traded dairy company, Tom...
Givaudan, the world's number one fragrance and flavour player, saw
sales in its flavour division slipping by 6.5 per cent for the
first quarter, impacted by a loss of products and a fall in prices,
writes Lindsey Partos.
Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling has acquired a 100 per cent stake of
Bankia, one of the leading Bulgarian natural mineral water
companies, in a move that further expands the company's presence in
the fast-growing Eastern European...
Allied Domecq, the world's second biggest spirits company, has
confirmed that it is in talks with Pernod Ricard and Fortune Brands
over its possible sale, a move that emphasizes the current rate of
global consolidation in the...
Uni-President Enterprises, Taiwan's biggest food company, has taken
a 5 per cent stake in China's largest fruit juice producer, a clear
sign that the mainland holds considerable attraction for the
ambitious Taiwanese firm.
Bravo Premium, the Russian drinks group, is celebrating the success
of its Milano brand, which it claims is the first pre-mixed
alcoholic drink on the Russian market to be created specifically
for women, reports Angela Drujinina.
A shift towards higher sales of premium products has helped
France's leading drinks group Pernod Ricard to post a 5.1 per cent
increase in net profits for 2004, shrugging off the impact of
exchange rate fluctuations.
US-based Graham Packaging is to acquire four Tetra Pak plants that
make HDPE (high-density polyethylene) plastic bottles for
nutritional beverages and value-added dairy beverages supplying
markets in Belgium, Brazil, Turkey, and the...
Southcorp, the Australian winery being stalked by compatriot
Foster's, has made a bold suggestion to its would-be acquirer - a
merger with the Mildara Blass wine division which would create the
country's biggest wine group....
Coca-Cola says it needs to take a more aggressive stance to
marketing its brands as a new report shows that the US carbonated
drinks market continues to struggle.
