E-Malt.com News article: Japan: Asahi Brewery to spend Y22.5 billion to cut plant costs over 3 years

Japan's Asahi Breweries Ltd. said July 20 that it will spend Y22.5 billion over the next three years in an effort to streamline plant operations and scale down costs on a group basis, Easy Bourse released July 20.

Asahi Breweries, the nation's biggest beer maker in terms of annual beer shipments, said it will add new facilities to produce soft drink and low-alcohol products at its beer-making plant in Ibaraki, north of Tokyo.

The company will shift its Asahi Soft Drinks Co. unit's soft drink production and distribution facilities in Kashiwa, also north of Tokyo, to the Ibaraki plant.

Another of the beverage maker's units, Nikka Whisky Distilling Co., will transfer most of its low-alchohol drink manufacturing to the new facilities in Ibaraki as well.

Asahi expects these steps will benefit the company, estimating a cost cutback of Y5 billion annually on a group basis.


21 July, 2006