Austrian Brau Union acquires 24% of Polish brewery

Brau Union, which belongs to Austrian company BBAG, has acquired 24% of Polish brewery Kujawiak Browary Bydgoskie. As a result, Brau Union controls about 4.7% of the brewery market in Poland. In January this year Brau Union bought Van Pur Rzeszow, giving BBAG 2.6% of the market. The company also plans to buy shares of Browary Warszawskie which, if successful, would make Brau Union the third largest brewery in Poland after Grupa Zywiec and Kompania Piwowarska. BBAG is trying to add more holdings in Central Europe where it already owns large stakes in the Czech, Hungarian and Romanian markets. (Gazeta Wyborcza, Apr. 22-24 , page 30; Prawo i Gospodarka, Apr. 22-24, page 2) M.M.