Brewers enjoy hot sales thanks to the heatwave

The beer market is growing even better than in the previous year when it improved by 5%. This year, sales already increased by 5.5% during the first half alone and with the hot weather continuing the figure is bound to rise. For the whole of 2006, according to Paweł Sudoł, the president of the Brewery Industry Employers Association, sales should reach 30 million hectolitres, but this is a very conservative forecast, as in 2005 breweries sold 30.3 million hectolitres. Breweries are much more optimistic in their predictions. The president of Carlsberg Polska, Marcin Piróg, says that his company had a 9% growth in July 2006 y-o-y. Kompania Piwowarska (Brewery Company, KP), the leader on the Polish market, also had better than average growth, but company director Mark Bowman emphasizes that they are introducing several new brands to the most trendy segments - in light and flavored beers they are promoting Lech Lite and new lemon flavored Redds, which they expect to help boost sales. (Puls Biznesu, p. 7) J.L.