Malt-free “beer” rises in the East

A wave of new non-malt, ‘beer-like’ product launches is building in Japan as the country’s beleaguered brewers continue to suffer from shrinking regular beer sales.

In 2010, Kirin expects malt-free, ‘third-category’ or ‘new genre’ product sales to surpass those of regular beer for the first time. In March the firm will launch Kirin 1000, a non-malt drink brewed with hard water and elevated levels of calcium and magnesium.

“Aiming to expand overall demand, we will pursue new value proposals for customers this year,” the firm said in a statement outlining its strategy for driving profitability in the declining Japanese beer market in 2010.

Kirin expects to shift 64.8 million cases of new genre drinks in 2010, an increase of almost 15%. Meanwhile the firm expects to sell 59.5 million cases of beer, down 5.6%, and 5.19 million of low-malt, ‘Happo-shu’ beers, a slide of 9.6%.

Competition in the sector is stiffening, with Japan’s biggest brewer Asahi preparing for the launch of Strong Off, a 7% ABV, low-carb offering and Suntory pushing its new Relax brand, a malt-free drink that uses seven different types of hop for flavour.

The Happo—shu and third-category sectors were inspired by Japan’s malt-based taxation system, which places regular beer - anything with more than 66.7% malt content –in a higher tax bracket. Third category brews use a variety of materials in their production, including soy and pea protein and corn.

Based on the following sources:
http://www.brewersguardian.com