The Beer market in the People's Republic of China

One fateful day in ancient Egypt (or perhaps China), a grain storage pit accidentally filled with warm water and fermentation occurred. A brave soul tasted this nasty concoction, felt the world's first beer buzz, and the rest is history. While the Chinese were some of the world's first distillers, they chose to take the path of rice wines and other alcoholic beverages; therefore, the magic of Beer in China is only a recent phenomenon. The first generation of breweries arrived as the Western Powers were laying claim to sections of China under various treaty arrangements. The city of Harbin, under Russian influence, opened China's first brewery in 1900. China's current largest exporter and most famous brand of beer, Qingdao, was founded in the German treaty port of Qingdao in 1903. The Budweiser’s manufacturer: Annheuser-Busch won in June the battle against his rival, SABMiller, making the first big repurchase operation in China. Annheuser-Busch took control of Harbin Brewery (the oldest brewering group in China), with the first takeover bid leaded by a foreign group in PRC. The operation cost for Annheuser-Busch is about 635 million Euros.

[...] Market size China produces more than 24 million tonnes of beer a year, and has now surpassed the US as the world’s largest and fastest growing beer market. The size of the market is estimated to be around 241,447 hectolitres, just before the American market, which is of 239,673 hectolitres. The average Chinese drinks just 19 litters a year, compared with 83 litres for Americans, according to industry estimates. The consumption per capita is not really important, but on a national scale, China is a market to penetrate and conquer for the beer industrialist. [...]

[...] 1995: China overtook Germany as the second largest beer market in the world in volume terms, yet continues to grow at a much more rapid rate that the developed markets of the West. 2003: China became the first market of the world (in consumption terms) before the USA. Today: The Budweiser’s manufacturer: Annheuser-Busch won in June the battle against his rival, SABMiller, making the first big repurchase operation in China. Annheuser-Busch took control of Harbin Brewery (the oldest brewering group in China); with the first takeover bid leaded by a foreign group in PRC. [...]

[...] Zhujiang, which has been cooperating with Interbrew for the past 18 years, produced seven million hectolitres in 2001 and has a 50 percent market share in Guangdong province Foreign enterprises and strategies to penetrate this market In the past, China's beer market and its chronic overcapacity have made it a graveyard for foreign brewers. Asia Brewery Inc., a Philippine company, sold a Shanghai brewery that lost money for six years. Foster's Brewing Corp. sold two breweries after seven unprofitable years. [...]