Speakers at a recent conference on the draft wine law currently
going through the Spanish parliament have stressed the beneficial
effects the law is likely to have on improving quality and reducing
over-production.
Carlsberg's head of supply chain, Jette Knudsen, is to leave the
group in December after a disastrous summer season which saw the
company recall millions of cans of sour-tasting beer from the
domestic market.
Several months of talks over the acquisition of ailing UK coffee
shop group Coffee Republic by sandwich bar owner Benjy's have ended
in failure, leaving Benjy's still looking for a means to expand.
The 1968 limited edition of Bunnahabhain Auld Acquaintance Scotch
whisky is expected to sell out within months of its release - just
like its two predecessors.
Exchange rate concerns kept nine month sales growth at LVMH to just
2 per cent, but the company, whose brands include Hennessy Cognac,
is predicting further gains for the second half as a whole.
Worse-than-expected performances at home and abroad, and from both
new and existing products, will mean pre-tax profits at UK cider
maker HP Bulmer falling at least £14 million short of expectations
in 2003.
Strong performances in Poland and Russia helped French spirits
group Belvedere to end the first half of the year back in the
black, at the operating level at least. Further restructuring and
acquisitions in Eastern Europe also bode...
Claims by the Russian Trade Ministry that Ochakovo beer contained
an illegal preservative have been quashed by a Moscow court, but
the case serves to highlight the problems facing the country's
burgeoning beer market.
The European Commission gives the go ahead to Diageo to sell its
last remaining food-related business, leaving the UK group free to
strengthen its position as the world's leading spirits and wine
producer.
Martell, the latest priority brand to join the Pernod Ricard
stable, will see a quarter of its workforce axed in the coming
months, a move Pernod says is necessary to keep the company
competitive.
Pepsi-Cola North America (PCNA) and Marion Pepsi-Cola Bottling said
on Thursday that they have reached an agreement to settle legal
action, pending since June 1999, involving the two long-time
business partners.
Expanding sales to the many countries which border with Russia, as
well as those further afield, is the order of the day at the
country's leading brewery, Baltika.
Two years after the town of Kutna Hora bought the local brewery in
order to maintain jobs, the business has been acquired by the
Drinks Union comapny which now plans a major increase in output.
A Spanish company offering to sell alcohol to consumers in Finland
could prove a rival to the state monopoly. But the fact that
delivery of the drinks could take up to two weeks - to say nothing
of moves to close the legal loophole...
Producers in the US passing off their fortified wines as sherry or
other Spanish products are affecting sales of the authentic
products there, prompting two denominations in Andalusia to
petition the EU authorities.
The sharp rise in sales in advance of the Millennium, and the
subsequent drop in turnover in 2001, have made life hard for
Champagne producers over the last few years, but things appear to
be getting back to normal in 2002, says the...
Germany's Eckes group has announced plans to sell its alcoholic
beverage business in order to focus on its fruit juice operations,
citing increasing competition and declining margins as its main
reasons for the sale.
William Grant & Sons, distiller of the Glenfiddich brand of
Scotch whisky, has added the Gibson's Finest Canadian rye whisky to
its portfolio, buying the brand for an disclosed sum from Diageo.
Six months after putting its food and beverage business up for
sale, Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis has found a buyer - the
UK's ABF group. The Ovaltine brand, jewel in the crown of the
acquisition, should benefit from...
The fluctuations of the sparkling wine market, which have affected
cava as much as Champagne in recent years, have prompted Spain's
Codorniu group to expand into other wine regions - most recently
the Ribera del Duero.
Any Cognac aficionado will talk at length about the multitude of
scents and aromas that the spirit has to offer, but Cognac Frapin
has now taken that a stage further and produced a perfume which it
claims evokes the very best of Cognac.
More action is needed from both government and industry alike if
the steady decline in French wine exports is to be halted, a junior
minister has warned. New World producers could soon take over as
the major exporters to Europe if...
Tuborg Gold is about to return to the giant US market after an
absence of nearly 10 years following an agreement between brand
owner Carlsberg and US distributor Bowmont.
Good weather in most of September has balanced the poor summer
period and left Bordeaux wine producers optimistic that the 2002
vintage will produce wines of good quality.
New legislation in Spain designed to restrict alcohol advertising
in a bid to reduce consumption levels will take account of the fact
that beer and wine both have a lower strength than spirits,
according to the country's food...
US fruit juice business Jamba Juice has launched a new smoothie
containing blueberries, raspberries and strawberries - a mix the
company claims offers a range of health benefits.
Dutch brewer Heineken is already profiting from its recent
strategic alliance with Costa Rican brewer FIFCO. The two companies
have joined forces with soft drink bottler Panamco to buy Baru, one
of the leading brewers in Panama.
Interbrew's Czech brewery Prazske Pivovary has completed the first
stage of its financial restructuring designed to help increase its
share capital and provide cash for future developments.
The US Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) has named
Accelerade, made by PacificHealth Laboratories, its official sports
drink. As part of the new partnership, PacificHealth will also
develop a nutrition education programme...
A lacklustre stock market performance compared to many of its
rivals belied a good first half performance from Wolverhampton
& Dudley, Britain's biggest regional brewer.
Britain's oldest brewer, Kent-based Shepherd Neame, has benefited
from strong demand for its Spitfire brand and an excellent
performance from its managed pubs to post its 27th annual increase
in profits.
Rioja wine exports grew by 8.5 per cent in the first eight months
of the year as a result of increasing demand in core markets such
as the UK and Germany. But the average price per litre continued to
fall, showing that Rioja's...
Now fully focused on wine and spirits, France's Pernod Ricard group
has announced a strong rise in first half sales and profits, thanks
to good organic growth from brands such as Jacob's Creek, and to
the addition of the...
Nestle Water's acquisition of a stake in the Saphir home and office
delivery water business in France gives it nationwide coverage and
will facilitate the roll out of its Aquarel brand.
Allied Domecq has announced the latest phase of its Move to Market
business plan with the appointment of a number of key managers to
three new business units within its spirits unit.
Beverage producers, wholesalers and retailers should join forces
with their respective industry associations to present a united
front on the issues of responsible drinking and taxation, says Paul
Clinton, head of Diageo's US...
Glenmorangie tightens its pan-European distribution by transferring
sales in key markets from Moet-Hennessy to Bacardi-Martini, thereby
reinforcing its exisitng relationship with Brown-Forman as well.
Despite the concern that it can cause TCA - the mouldy smell
attributed to bad wine - natural cork is the preferred closure for
most US winemakers, according to a survey carried out on behalf of
the Amorim cork group.
The addition of the Pommery brand, acquired from LVMH in April,
will help Vranken Monopole lift its sales and profits this year,
although the company is expecting an improvement even without the
new brand.
Having closed its Irish Glass Bottle Company with the loss of 375
jobs earlier this year, Ardagh has reported an operating profit
from its continuing operations of €14.6 million in the first half.
The surging interest in farm wineries led to a doubling in the
population of bonded wineries across the United States in the past
decade and has now reached 2,700, according to a survey by the
American Vintners Association (AVA),...
The Catalan authorities claim that Spanish winery and cava producer
Miguel Torres is continuing to make wine from grapes grown on
illegally-planted vineyards - a claim denied by the producer.
ZonePerfect Nutrition Company is launching five new nutrition bar
flavours at the Natural Products Expo East show taking place this
weekend in Washington. The company says the new flavours are in
response to high demand for its products.
Ball Corporation will release its third quarter 2002 earnings on
Thursday 24 October before trading begins on the New York Stock
Exchange. At 9am US Mountain Time, Ball will hold its regular
quarterly conference call on the company's...
Launching its advertising campaign online means that Spain's
Bodegas Gandia can reach a far wider audience at a fraction of the
cost, a vital necessity for a company which prides itself on its
relationship with consumers worldwide.
The board of the National Stock Exchange of Lithuania (NSEL) has
decided to remove shares in Grafobal Vilnius, the paper and
paperboard packaging manufacturer, from the bourse's Current List
of Trading with effect from 1November,...
