Czech state-owned brewery Bud?jovický Budvar produced 1.424 million hectoliters of beer in 2013, a year-on-year growth of 6.2% and the highest volume in its 118-year history, the company said this week.
The maker of the Czech Pilsner, who has been embroiled a long legal battle with US beer giant Anheuser-Busch over the use of the "Budweiser" brand, says its overall output and exports reached record highs in 2013.
Budejovicky Budvar says exports rose by 16.1% to reach 763,000 hectoliters (20.15 million gallons) of beer, its best results ever.
Czech beer production dropped by 1.5 % in January–October 2013, while the country's beer exports rose by 4.6 % in the period, according to data from the Czech Beer and Malt Association which was printed in the Prague Post.
"We consider last year's business results an achievement because they are considerably better than the overall results of the Czech brewing industry," Bud?jovický Budvar's chief executive Ji?í Bocek told ?TK.
The brewer exported its beer to 65 countries last year, seven more than in 2012, another record number for the company.
In related news Budvar have appointed ex-Magners UK channel director Simon George as its new sales director for the UK. George has had a long career in the drinks industry, having worked for Bass, Constellation Europe and Coors in various roles.
© 2014 - European Supermarket Magazine by Enda Dowling
