Fresh beer tastes better

Quality main driver for Farsons agreement with Anheuser-Busch to bottle Budweiser

Two enemies of quality in the brewing process, according to Andrew J. Day, are time and temperature. Not only is it important for you to drink beer that is freshest but that its temperature is also maintained right up to the time it reaches the consumer.

Anheuser-Busch goes to extraordinary lengths to ensure this right through the supply chain, Mr Day said last month, shortly after the announcement that Budweiser brewed in the UK is now to be bottled by Farsons at Mriehel - "from the brewery, through shipping, to our partners, (and) the retailer. The process must be quick and efficient, to make sure that the consumer gets the freshest bottle of product."

For everyone at Anheuser-Busch, beer brewing is a religion. "We invest enormous amounts of capital first of all in the brewery to ensure that we take all the oxygen out of the beer; that we only use the finest, all-natural ingredients; that the beer has that clean, crisp, refreshingly different taste that defines Budweiser," Mr Day said.

This communication is taken right the way through to the consumer. He pointed out that on the back of the bottle not only is there a 'best by' date but also what he termed the "born on" date - unlike any beer on the market. "We encourage consumers to look and compare how fresh their Budweiser is compared to the competition because, simply put, fresh beer tastes better.

"We encourage ourselves and Louis (A. Farrugia, Farsons Group chief executive) and his team always to think fresh so that we can enable our consumers to drink fresh."

Asked why oxygen is such a factor, Mr Day said if too much oxygen gets into the head space at the top of the beer bottle, it gets absorbed into the beer and the beer oxidises. "That's what gives that cardboardy, off taste," he added.

Anheuser-Busch also ensures the beer is freshest by trying to brew just enough to satisfy market demand, keeping no more than two weeks' stock. "We would rather spend more money investing in forecasting tools and forecasting sophistication," he said.

This enabled the company "to have great communication at the brewery to have low inventories". Anheuser-Busch, he stressed, does not use inventory "as a kind of a buffer, which is frankly what some people do. If we are uncertain about whether the beer will chill or shouldn't be sold, we will always err on caution and we won't sell it."

"Quality has to be embedded in the fabric of the company. It is with Anheuser-Busch and it is within Farsons. That's really the first place to begin. I think a lot of companies talk about quality and for us that's very important.

"Quality goes right the way through the selling system. It goes from the brewery through our selling system, through our partners' selling system right the way through the retailer division team. We want to take every precaution to make sure that the consumer enjoys our product in the best possible way."

Anheuser-Busch has enjoyed a 20-year relationship with Farsons and double-digit growth for a decade in the Budweiser brand. "One of the things I admire about the Farsons Group is their history, their heritage and their tradition, coupled with their ability to envision a future for their business, adapt and change, building on their successes but keeping relevant for the future.

"And the opportunity for us to begin to package Budweiser locally was one that came about through mutual opportunities. The brand had grown. Louis and his team were looking to the future and deciding how they could best position their business for the future.

"The opportunity to package Budweiser and upgrade the quality of the packaging environment was something that came together at the right time for both of us."

Mr Farrugia agreed with Mr Day that the agreement with Anheuser-Busch was a win-win situation. It would "add value to the parent company's operations and, therefore, to the Maltese economy, indirectly". Anheuser-Busch was comfortable that Farsons had met its quality standards.

"We are meeting them and we benefit from that as well because we get transfer of technology and standards which are quite high as well. At the same time, both partners can plan the growth of the brand."

Mr Day said Farsons was "looking to the future and decided how they could best position their business. The opportunity to package Budweiser and upgrade the quality of their packaging environment was something that came together at the right time for both of us."

For Anheuser-Busch it was a business-driven decision but on the Malta end it involved an investment of some Lm1 million at the Brewery in Mriehel. Mr Day's arguments were the growing local market share and the importance of tourism.

"We love local Maltese people to be able to enjoy our beer in the best possible condition with the most exciting properties, such as Formula 1 or soccer, that are available. The second is you have a very strong tourist market and for them to be able to enjoy Budweiser when they are at home or on vacation is really very very important."

Anheuser-Busch is based in St Louis, Missouri, USA. There are 12 breweries in the US, the most profitable beer market in the world, and brews in nine countries around the world, including China. In Europe, it has its own brewery in London and contract brews in Ireland, Spain and Italy. Malta-bottled Budweiser is brewed in London and travels overland in temperature-controlled (-1°C) tankers.

The biggest brewer in the world in terms of revenue and operating profit, Anheuser-Busch has just announced record results, including the 21st consecutive quarter of double digit earnings growth. Last year it sold the equivalent of 128 million US barrels of beer.

Anheuser-Busch believes very strongly in competition. "We can never allow ourselves to get complacent," Mr Day said, "because as Louis so eloquently put it in his remarks earlier on, the consumer always has a choice. For us, the consumer has a choice and the retailer has a choice.

"So we have to continually ensure that our brands are the most attractive and the most relevant for the consumer. That's why we get involved in things like Formula 1, the World Cup, Manchester United and, in the UK, we are the official beer of the English Premier League (and) Chelsea.

"If you look at music, our involvement is broad and deep. So, we are always appealing and attracting people to drink and enjoy our product - but enjoy it responsibly."

Asked whether Farsons had been given any targets, Mr Day said his company was more concerned in ensuring Budweiser is relevant to consumers. In that way, he said, together Anheuser-Busch and Farsons have every opportunity to maintain their growth. "It's really more about the commitment and the willingness to try new things and grow the market."