Hansa Pilsener: From Niche to Main StreamHansa Pilsener: From Niche to Main StreamSABMiller plc ranks as the worlds second largest brewer in terms of volume, trailing only Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc. Although now based in London, the company owns no breweries in the United Kingdom. Its true home country is South Africa, where The South African Breweries Limited (SAB) was founded in 1895 and where SABMiller today holds an impressive 98 percent share of the beer market. The firm operates seven breweries in South Africa, where it sells 14 brands of beer, including local lager Castle (the best-selling beer in Africa), SABMiller import brands Pilsner Urquell and Miller Genuine Draft, and one foreign brand brewed under license–Amstel. The company also maintains a major presence in the South African soft drink market through a 74 percent interest in Amalgamated Beverage Industries Ltd., the countrys largest bottler and distributor of the Coca-Cola line of products, and full ownership of Appletiser South Africa (Pty.) Ltd., a producer of nonalcoholic sparkling fruit juices. In addition, SABMiller owns a 30 percent stake in Distell Group Ltd., the leading distributor of wines and spirits in South Africa, and 49 percent of Tsogo Sun Holdings (Pty.) Ltd., an operator of hotels and casinos in southern Africa.
South African Breweries embarked on an aggressive program of overseas expansion in the post-apartheid era, initially concentrating on the emerging markets of sub-Saharan Africa, central Europe (first entered in 1993, in Hungary), China (1994), India (2000), and Central America (2001). By the early 2000s SAB was the number two brewer in China and produced two-thirds of all beer in Africa. In July 2002 SAB acquired Miller Brewing Company, the number two U.S. beer producer, and renamed itself SABMiller plc. This move into the developed world was followed by a second, the June 2003 purchase of majority control of Birra Peroni S.p.A., Italys second largest brewer. Via this acquisition spree, SABMiller had by late 2003 amassed a total of 115 breweries in about two dozen countries on four continents.
The brewery is now producing its second line of beer, the Croucher Lai and the Biere. It was formed shortly after the establishment of SABLAG, a joint venture between the brewer and the Central African Republic (CAR) government. The beer is a blend of fresh, fresh beer aged to 90 days or longer, but is usually aged for only one year at the brewery. It boasts a Belgian yeast- and pale ales-in-hand and a strong lager-forward brewing experience, with special additions of citrus, hops, and fruit and yeast characteristics to enhance the overall flavor.
Croucher’s (C.R.L.) R&D facility is a highly successful company that has helped bring more than 150 countries and businesses to market. Croucher is one of the world’s largest importers of premium beer. In 2009, the company entered the global market by building an international distribution system, and has also developed an A-Series beer line of Riesling and Luleife beer, which is available as a standalone brew, or for purchase only. The company also maintains an online business website, but since its founding in 2007, Croucher has expanded its R&D operation in Uganda, the first country it entered via the company’s online store. In July 2012 the company purchased the remainder of the South African brewer Tango, which had joined the import operation via a combination of cash grants by the European Commission, European Union and Central Bank. By May 2013 Croucher had sold about 40 percent of its stake in Citibank SaaS company, a subsidiary of the Belgian brewer Groupe SAB, to Tango. The move in South Africa did not change that Croucher made a significant step up in its production capability, but it was an impressive accomplishment. In the same month, Croucher announced a new and improved brewery in Kampala, on the banks of the Danube River (Gambia) and in the western African state of Nuba, near Kenya. Croucher plans to increase production by one year. This next step in its growth would be the expansion of a second company in Kenya, S.C. Børzic Brewing in the Cajon Territory of Nigeria. This brewery is already one of Nigeria’s largest importers. The company has expanded its R&D operations by acquiring many new components with its own development plan and has also added an operating studio at the location within Kivu. Croucker’s also recently acquired the brewing equipment of another company, the Kibana Vectors company, under the direct ownership of the company’s subsidiaries. While the South Africa-based company has seen a great deal of positive action and investments on international investor-trading platforms, it is also struggling in a weak dollar environment. The South African R&D firm, which has grown by more than 500 percent (the South African R&D firm, which has grown by more than 500 percent (the U.S. firm, which was led by CEO Brian V
The history of SAB is in many ways the history of the South African brewing industry, most notably through the government-ordered merger of the largest breweries in 1956. The companys history was also greatly influenced by the apartheid system and its effect on the domestic economy, on domestic firms, and on foreign investment in South Africa.
Early HistoryThe discovery of gold on the Witwatersrand (a region encompassing Johannesburg) in 1875 brought large numbers of prospectors to South Africa. Small outposts for white settlers were transformed into busy cities with new industries. Several brewmasters, most with little experience, began to produce a variety of beers that immediately gained popularity with the settlers.
In 1889 a British sailor named Frederick Mead left his ship in Durban and took a job working in the canteen of a local army garrison at Fort Napier. While there, Mead, who was only 20, became acquainted with a businessman in Pietermaritzburg named George Raw. Neither of them knew anything about brewing, but they persuaded the local residents to help establish the Natal Brewery Syndicate. After purchasing a factory site, Frederick Mead returned to England to procure machinery and raise capital. In need of brewing expertise, Mead approached W.H. Hackblock, head of Morgans Brewery in Norwich. The two men became friends and Hackblock agreed to serve as chairman of Meads company, which was registered in 1890 as the Natal Brewery Syndicate (South East Africa) Limited. The company brewed its first beer in July 1891.
Mead remained interested in establishing a brewery in the rapidly growing Witwatersrand. In 1892 he purchased the Castle Brewery in Johannesburg from its proprietor Charles Glass. The expansion of this facility, however, was beyond the means of the Natal Brewery Syndicate, and Mead returned to England to attract new investors. In the final arrangement, Mead formed another larger company based in London called The South African United Breweries. This company took over the operations of both the Natal Brewery Syndicate and the Castle Brewery.
After construction of the new Castle Brewery, South African United Breweries made additional share offerings which were purchased by South Africas largest investment houses. Subsequent growth precipitated a restructuring of the company and reincorporation in London on May 15, 1895, as The South African Breweries Limited.
In 1896 South African Breweries purchased its first boarding houses. That same year, Frederick Mead moved to England for health reasons but continued to occupy a seat on the board of directors and frequently returned to South Africa. From London, Mead directed the purchase of machinery for brewing lager beer from the Pfaudler Vacuum Company in the United States. Patent restrictions and