Hop business: brewers have teamed up to take the industry to a new level
The largest brewing companies in Russia have decided to jointly develop the industry. They announced this at the Baltika Fest, where the first meeting of the council created for this purpose was held. One of the goals is to reduce dependence on imports as much as possible. For example, in the coming years, it will decrease to 50% for hop supplies, and to almost zero for aluminum cans, the meeting participants noted. The festival itself, dedicated to the 35th anniversary of Baltika, has become a large-scale event that unites ordinary beer lovers and business representatives. The participants compared it to the largest brewers' festival in Germany, Oktoberfest, and there was a proposal to hold the Baltic Fest regularly. What else happened at the gastronomic festival is in the Izvestia report.
Why did the brewers decide to unite
The urgent tasks facing Russian brewers were discussed on September 13 at the first meeting of the Council for the Development of the Beer and Non-alcoholic industry. It took place in the Leningrad region, right at the motorhome "Igor Drive" — it was there that the Baltika Fest festival, dedicated to the 35th anniversary of the company, was held on this day. The meeting was attended by representatives of the largest manufacturing companies and leading industry experts.
Taimuraz Bolloev
Taimuraz Bolloev, Chairman of the Board and founder of Baltika, immediately explained why this association was created.
— We looked at how the industry is regulated in general, and found that the disunity within the industry is so great that not a single center makes a decision, but more than a dozen associations, unions, — he noted.
As a result, many enterprises in the industry were stagnating. Taimuraz Bolloev illustrated this with the example of the same Baltika, which for many years was run by Danes from the Carlsberg Group.
— It turned out that during the 15 years when the foreign owners were involved in the company, there was not success, but stagnation in the whole enterprise and the events that took place around it, — said Bolloev.
In particular, the production of domestic beers at the enterprise has decreased by half. European owners developed only their brands, made a profit, but did not invest in production. Now the plant is under the control of the Russian business. The company has its own hoppers and malt houses, eight factories — from the Far East to the north-west of the country.
Current members of the Council for the Development of the Beer and Non-alcoholic industry — CEO of AB InBev Efes JSC (Drinks Together) Nikolay Tyurnikov and Dmitry Kiselyov, Chairman of the Board of the Association of the Federal Self-Regulatory Organization of Winegrowers and Winemakers of Russia, supported the need to unite market players to create common rules in order to form a strong and responsibly developing industry.
The meeting was also joined by future members of the board — Alexey Sagal, President of United Breweries — Holding, Arnest JSC, Elena Tyukina, founder of Knightberg Brewery, and Alexander Adyrkhaev, co-founder of Gellert Bar LLC. Igor Khavsky, the head of the Opora Russia commission for the production and turnover of brewing products, also joined the organization.
Special attention at the council meeting was paid to the need to create favorable conditions for the development of the industry, the formation of an expertise center, the development of the raw material base and the introduction of innovative technologies. The participants want to develop a unified approach to solving the problems of the industry and prepare proposals for the development of regulation of the production of beer and non-alcoholic products.
— Brewers have done a lot of work in recent years. Despite the high taxes and restrictions, the industry continues to develop and improve. We invest in technology, equipment and agriculture, and support the development of the non—alcoholic segment," said Taimuraz Bolloev.
According to him, a new government policy is needed for the sustainable growth of the Russian brewing industry. Nikolai Tyurnikov agreed with this opinion.
— Now it is very important to unite in a timely manner in order to solve the complex tasks facing the industry together. And to overcome the challenges that we face as brewers," said the business representative.
He noted that last year the market grew at a record rate of 10.3%, but this year the trend has slowed down, with growth of 1.8% in seven months.
According to Alexey Sagal, President of United Breweries Holding, Arnest JSC, it is necessary to resolve import substitution issues as much as possible and develop Russian brands.
— The export potential of Russian companies is great today. Therefore, the dependence on imports that has developed over the past decades, which is rapidly changing today, must be solved by our internal resources. To do this, we must unite. And we can use everything that we have best together," he said.
In particular, by 2030, Russian factories will be half—supplied with hops - its production is growing rapidly, unlike the period when foreign factory owners imported it from Germany, the Czech Republic and the USA. Another problem will be solved in the near future.
— The shortage of aluminum cans is a problem that has hindered the development of Russian brewers and beverage manufacturers for many years. At the moment, this problem will be completely solved," said Alexey Sagal.
This will be helped by the imminent launch of factories in Voronezh and Ulyanovsk, where 4 billion cans per year will be produced, plus 11.5 billion in existing capacities. After that, it will be possible to completely abandon the import of cans, which is already small — only 200 million pieces per year.
The government also helps Russian beer producers. In particular, on the eve it raised duties for products of unfriendly countries — for beer they will rise from € 1 to €1.5 per liter, for cider — from 22.5 to 30%. The new rates will be effective from December 31. This will spur domestic companies to create new non-alcoholic flavors and revive old ones.
Taimuraz Bolloev also said that the council aims to raise the prestige of the profession of a brewer and Russian beer, to make the product a symbol of quality and culture.
"By working together, we will create a strong national brand that can gain a foothold in the international market," he said.
Alexander Beglov, the Governor of St. Petersburg, stressed that the work of engineers, workers, technologists, and the company's management has already made Baltika an advanced enterprise in its industry not only in Russia, but also in the world.
Now Baltika, together with its partners, is raising the domestic brewing industry to a new level. Russia is one of the top 5 largest countries in terms of beer production. Last year, Russian companies brewed more than 9 billion liters.
The atmosphere of celebration and drive
Tickets for the Baltika Fest festival itself were sold out long before it started. Those who were late tried to find an extra ticket through social media. And it was worth it! After all, despite the fact that the weather turned out to be almost autumnal — cold wind, gray clouds and lack of sun, an atmosphere of celebration and good mood prevailed on the territory of Igor Drive. At the entrance, everyone was treated to non-alcoholic beer for free and raffled off gifts.
The guests of the festival were greeted by six themed stations representing different territories of Russia, with unusual tasks. So, at the Volga Region stand, the contestants, without letting go of a can of non-alcoholic beer, had to perform yoga exercises on mats. At the station of the middle lane, the festival guests were invited to dance a Russian folk dance, and near the Caucasus they were invited to play a quiz with national dishes.
An instant win from Baltika awaited the festival participants in an unusual beer casino. Here it was necessary to bet on the foam, guessing its name, degrees or place of origin.
— Yoga is exactly what you need right now! The weather didn't scare me, because I really want a holiday. In general, we really love the Accident Disco group that performed here and all kinds of activities," Olga Shevchenko from St. Petersburg shared her impressions of the festival, noting the very high level of organization of the event.
— There's a lot of energy here and I want to recharge, — said another participant of the event, Alla Gonieva. — We came to the festival for positivity and drive.
The event was attended not only from different cities of Russia, but also from other countries.
— My husband and I have bought tickets, and we are waiting for the show and the celebration. My husband is from Serbia and loves Russia very much. He has been to Oktoberfest in Germany many times and said that now he wants to watch a show that is being staged in Russia," Ekaterina Miloslavlevich said.
The festival was also highly appreciated by the Governor of the Leningrad Region, Alexander Drozdenko, who attended the event. He noted that this event attracts small and medium-sized businesses, and, most importantly, tourists.
— Therefore, if we have the honor to make this festival permanent, I will support it one hundred percent. Yes, I think both Leningraders, Petersburgers, and guests of our region will be happy to support him," said the head of the region.
The guests of the festival could enjoy delicious dishes, also presented by various regions of Russia.: northern shrimps, Karelian crayfish, Baltic currants, knuckle and roast beef. The headliners of the festival were the legend of Russian rock "Chaif", the cult band of the 1990s and 2000s "Disco Accident" and singer Marie Crymbreri.
According to Alexey Titov, General Director of the Igor Drive autodrom, the Baltika Fest gastro—festival turned out to be even better than the German Oktoberfest - the scale of the event was amazing, there was a "sea of people" in a great mood. And even the St. Petersburg weather was pleased with the lack of rain.
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