Bavaria Brewery
Encyclopedia
Bavaria is the second largest brewery
in the Netherlands
. The company, which produces five million hectolitres of beer annually, is based in the town of Lieshout
, North Brabant
. Founded in 1719 by Laurentius Moorees, it is currently owned by the Swinkels family.
The brewery produces a range of standard and low alcohol pale lagers under a variety of brand names including Bavaria and Hollandia. The best-known global product is Bavaria Premium Pils lager. But the brewery also makes an alcohol-free beer; malts are also available in apple, caramel, lemon and karkadé flavours. It is also contracted to make a number of European supermarket own-brand Dutch lagers.
Bavaria makes two special beers called Bavaria 8.6 and Bavaria 8.6 Red. Other special beers include the La Trappe and the Moreeke, a tribute to one of Bavaria's founding fathers, Laurentius Morees. Previously in Australia, the Liquorland
chain of bottle shops distributed both Bavaria and Hollandia brands as 'premium' imported Dutch beers, before switching over to Hollandia exclusively. Bavaria is now found throughout Australia in independent bottle shops. Bavaria Crown is sold in Ireland
. Since the early 1990s, Bavaria has exported premium beer to several countries in the former Soviet Union
.
BY 1719, Laurentius Moorees had founded Bavaria Brouwerij in Lieshout
, 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) from Eindhoven. Annually the village brewery produced around 88 barrels (approximately 14400 liters) of beer. It was not until Moorees' great-grandson received ownership of the brewery that production was expanded. Jan Swinkels, born in 1851, increased distribution and operations at the site. By 1910 a malting plant had been built (it still produces malt for Bavaria and other breweries) and output had increased to tens of thousands of liters of beer per annum. By 1924 the original brewery buildings had become too small for the plant so a larger brewery was built in Lieshout. In 1933 the brewery added its own bottling plant, which produced 2,000 bottles-per-hour.
Until the 1970s Bavaria only concentrated on the Dutch market but it now sells products in up to 100 countries. The brewery, which adapts its drinks to individual markets, has sales subsidiaries in France, Spain, Italy, England, South-Africa and America and agents in other countries. For instance In 1978, alcohol-free malt beer was exported to countries in the Middle East.
Bavaria is now the second largest brewery in Holland. The annual production is above five million hectolitres of beer. The majority of beer is still brewed in Lieshout, but Bavaria products are also brewed locally in Russia by Efes Beverage Group (EBI)
and at Bavaria's own brewery in South-Africa. The company also has a soft drinks factory, two malt houses and manages the De Koningshoeven Brewery
, a Trappist Brewery
. Barley
is still malted in Bavaria's own malt houses in Lieshout and in the Eemshaven
. These two malt houses have an annual capacity of 240,000 tonnes and are a joint venture between Bavaria and a farmers' cooperative called the Holland Malt company.
Since 2005 Bavaria has hosted the Bavaria City Racing event in Rotterdam. In 2007, Bavaria sponsored the Dutch Champ Car Grand Prix.
In 1999, the Trappist Koningshoeven Abbey
entered into an agreement with Bavaria to take over the daily operations of the monks' brewery within the abbey. As a result of this agreement the Abbey did not display the "Authentic Trappist Product" logo, though did label the beer as "Trappistenbier". In 2005, the logo was again displayed on bottles after the monks took a more active role in the brewery.
The brewery, which operates as "De Koningshoeven NV", is a subsidiary of the Bavaria Brewery. But the buildings and equipment remain in the ownership of the abbey. The monks remain the ultimate authority on the brewing process while Bavaria manages the commercial business.
imposed punitive fines on three major European breweries for operating a price fixing cartel
in the Netherlands
. The three were Heineken
(€219.3m), Grolsch (€31.65m) and Bavaria (€22.85m). A fourth participant in the cartel, InBev
(formerly Interbrew
), escaped without a penalty because it provided "decisive information" about the cartel's operations between 1996 and 1999, as well as about others in the EU market. These four brewers had controlled 95% of the Dutch market, with Heineken
claiming a half and the three others 15% each.
EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes
said she was "very disappointed" that the collusion took place at the very highest (boardroom) level. She stated, "This is simply unacceptable: that major beer suppliers colluded to up prices and to carve up markets among themselves. She added, "Heineken, Grolsch, Bavaria and InBev tried to cover their tracks by using code names and abbreviations for secret meetings to carve up the market for beer sold to supermarkets, hotels, restaurants and cafes. The price fixing
extended to cheaper own-brand
labels and rebates for bars
.
, Bavaria Brewery got up to 1,000 fans of the Dutch national football team to don orange overalls, called Leeuwenhosen
, with the brewery's logo on them. The Leeuwenhosen were given away with the purchase of Bavaria Brewery products prior to the World Cup. However the action was deemed to be an act of ambush marketing
by FIFA
as Bavaria, which was not a corporate sponsor, had not paid any money to be an official event partner. With pre-warning from FIFA officials, staff at the game versus Ivory Coast asked fans to remove the overalls upon entrance to the game and provided orange replacement shorts without any logo.
During the 2010 FIFA World Cup
, 36 women clad in orange miniskirts went to the Netherlands vs Denmark match in Johannesburg, using tickets supplied at least in part by British
ITV
pundit and ex-footballer Robbie Earle
. Tournament officials evicted the group en masse from the stadium upon which they were arrested and held by the Police. They were released upon talks between the management of Bavaria and FIFA.
Brewery
A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company....
in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. The company, which produces five million hectolitres of beer annually, is based in the town of Lieshout
Lieshout
Lieshout is a small village in the southern Netherlands, lying about 15 kilometres northeast of Eindhoven. There are 4,300 inhabitants, and the village is famous for its beer brewery called 'Bavaria'....
, North Brabant
North Brabant
North Brabant , sometimes called Brabant, is a province of the Netherlands, located in the south of the country, bordered by Belgium in the south, the Meuse River in the north, Limburg in the east and Zeeland in the west.- History :...
. Founded in 1719 by Laurentius Moorees, it is currently owned by the Swinkels family.
Products
Bavaria makes two special beers called Bavaria 8.6 and Bavaria 8.6 Red. Other special beers include the La Trappe and the Moreeke, a tribute to one of Bavaria's founding fathers, Laurentius Morees. Previously in Australia, the Liquorland
LiquorLAND
Liquorland is an Australian liquor chain owned by Wesfarmers. Liquorland is one of three brands within Wesfarmers' Coles division., along with fine-wine focussed Vintage Cellars and the larger discount format 1st Choice Liquor Superstore...
chain of bottle shops distributed both Bavaria and Hollandia brands as 'premium' imported Dutch beers, before switching over to Hollandia exclusively. Bavaria is now found throughout Australia in independent bottle shops. Bavaria Crown is sold in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. Since the early 1990s, Bavaria has exported premium beer to several countries in the former Soviet Union
CIS
CIS usually refers to the Commonwealth of Independent States, a modern political entity consisting of eleven former Soviet Union republics.The acronym CIS may also refer to:-Organizations:...
.
History
Lieshout
Lieshout is a small village in the southern Netherlands, lying about 15 kilometres northeast of Eindhoven. There are 4,300 inhabitants, and the village is famous for its beer brewery called 'Bavaria'....
, 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) from Eindhoven. Annually the village brewery produced around 88 barrels (approximately 14400 liters) of beer. It was not until Moorees' great-grandson received ownership of the brewery that production was expanded. Jan Swinkels, born in 1851, increased distribution and operations at the site. By 1910 a malting plant had been built (it still produces malt for Bavaria and other breweries) and output had increased to tens of thousands of liters of beer per annum. By 1924 the original brewery buildings had become too small for the plant so a larger brewery was built in Lieshout. In 1933 the brewery added its own bottling plant, which produced 2,000 bottles-per-hour.
Until the 1970s Bavaria only concentrated on the Dutch market but it now sells products in up to 100 countries. The brewery, which adapts its drinks to individual markets, has sales subsidiaries in France, Spain, Italy, England, South-Africa and America and agents in other countries. For instance In 1978, alcohol-free malt beer was exported to countries in the Middle East.
Bavaria is now the second largest brewery in Holland. The annual production is above five million hectolitres of beer. The majority of beer is still brewed in Lieshout, but Bavaria products are also brewed locally in Russia by Efes Beverage Group (EBI)
Efes Beverage Group
Efes Beer Group was founded in Turkey in 1969, and today consists of sixteen breweries in Turkey, Russia, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Georgia and Serbia, with headquarters in Istanbul. Named after the ancient Greek city of Ephesus located near the İzmir brewery, the company is a subsidiary of Anadolu...
and at Bavaria's own brewery in South-Africa. The company also has a soft drinks factory, two malt houses and manages the De Koningshoeven Brewery
De Koningshoeven Brewery
De Koningshoeven Brewery is a Dutch Trappist brewery founded in 1884 within the walls of the abbey Onze Lieve Vrouw van Koningshoeven in Berkel-Enschot .- History :...
, a Trappist Brewery
Trappist beer
A Trappist beer is a beer brewed by or under control of Trappist monks. There are a total of 174 Trappist monasteries worldwide ; only seven produce Trappist beer and are authorized to label their beers with the Authentic Trappist Product logo that indicates a compliance to the various rules of...
. Barley
Barley
Barley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...
is still malted in Bavaria's own malt houses in Lieshout and in the Eemshaven
Eemshaven
thumb|right|[[Satellite]] [[image]] of the Ems [[estuary]] showing the location of Eemshaven Eemshaven is a seaport in Groningen, Netherlands....
. These two malt houses have an annual capacity of 240,000 tonnes and are a joint venture between Bavaria and a farmers' cooperative called the Holland Malt company.
Since 2005 Bavaria has hosted the Bavaria City Racing event in Rotterdam. In 2007, Bavaria sponsored the Dutch Champ Car Grand Prix.
De Koningshoeven Brewery
De Koningshoeven Brewery
De Koningshoeven Brewery is a Dutch Trappist brewery founded in 1884 within the walls of the abbey Onze Lieve Vrouw van Koningshoeven in Berkel-Enschot .- History :...
entered into an agreement with Bavaria to take over the daily operations of the monks' brewery within the abbey. As a result of this agreement the Abbey did not display the "Authentic Trappist Product" logo, though did label the beer as "Trappistenbier". In 2005, the logo was again displayed on bottles after the monks took a more active role in the brewery.
The brewery, which operates as "De Koningshoeven NV", is a subsidiary of the Bavaria Brewery. But the buildings and equipment remain in the ownership of the abbey. The monks remain the ultimate authority on the brewing process while Bavaria manages the commercial business.
Price fixing conviction
On April 18, 2007 The European commissionEuropean Commission
The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
imposed punitive fines on three major European breweries for operating a price fixing cartel
Cartel
A cartel is a formal agreement among competing firms. It is a formal organization of producers and manufacturers that agree to fix prices, marketing, and production. Cartels usually occur in an oligopolistic industry, where there is a small number of sellers and usually involve homogeneous products...
in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. The three were Heineken
Heineken
Heineken is a Dutch beer which has been brewed by Heineken International since 1873. It is available in a 4.6% alcohol variety in countries such as Ireland. It is the flagship product of the Heineken company and is made of purified water, malted barley, hops, and yeast. In 1886 H...
(€219.3m), Grolsch (€31.65m) and Bavaria (€22.85m). A fourth participant in the cartel, InBev
InBev
InBev is a subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev. The company existed independently for several years - since the merger between Interbrew and AmBev and until the acquisition of Anheuser-Busch. InBev has operations in over 30 countries and sales in over 130 countries...
(formerly Interbrew
Interbrew
Interbrew was a large Belgium-based brewing company which owned many internationally known beers, as well as some smaller local beers. In 2004 Interbrew merged with Brazilian brewer AmBev to form InBev, which is the now largest brewer in the world by volume, with a 13% global market share now...
), escaped without a penalty because it provided "decisive information" about the cartel's operations between 1996 and 1999, as well as about others in the EU market. These four brewers had controlled 95% of the Dutch market, with Heineken
Heineken
Heineken is a Dutch beer which has been brewed by Heineken International since 1873. It is available in a 4.6% alcohol variety in countries such as Ireland. It is the flagship product of the Heineken company and is made of purified water, malted barley, hops, and yeast. In 1886 H...
claiming a half and the three others 15% each.
EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes
Neelie Kroes
Neelie Kroes is a Dutch politician of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy . She served as a Member of the House of Representatives from 3 August 1971 until 28 December 1977 when she became State Secretary for Transport, Public Works and Water Management from 28 December 1977 until 11...
said she was "very disappointed" that the collusion took place at the very highest (boardroom) level. She stated, "This is simply unacceptable: that major beer suppliers colluded to up prices and to carve up markets among themselves. She added, "Heineken, Grolsch, Bavaria and InBev tried to cover their tracks by using code names and abbreviations for secret meetings to carve up the market for beer sold to supermarkets, hotels, restaurants and cafes. The price fixing
Price fixing
Price fixing is an agreement between participants on the same side in a market to buy or sell a product, service, or commodity only at a fixed price, or maintain the market conditions such that the price is maintained at a given level by controlling supply and demand...
extended to cheaper own-brand
Store brand
Store brands are a line of products sold by a retailer under a single marketing identity. They bear a similarity to the concept of House brands, Private label brands in the United States, own brands in the UK, and home brands in Australia and generic brands...
labels and rebates for bars
Bar (establishment)
A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...
.
World Cup Ambush Marketing campaigns
At the 2006 FIFA World Cup2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
, Bavaria Brewery got up to 1,000 fans of the Dutch national football team to don orange overalls, called Leeuwenhosen
Leeuwenhosen
Leeuwenhosen are orange-colored, lion-tailed overalls distributed by the Bavaria Brewery, a popular Dutch beer brewery, during the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The concept was realized by Peer Swinkels, the chairman of Bavaria . The leeuwenhosen may have been inspired by the coincidence that the Dutch...
, with the brewery's logo on them. The Leeuwenhosen were given away with the purchase of Bavaria Brewery products prior to the World Cup. However the action was deemed to be an act of ambush marketing
Ambush marketing
Ambush marketing can be defined as a marketing strategy wherein the advertisers associate themselves with, and therefore capitalize on, a particular event without paying any sponsorship fee. The Macmillan English Dictionary defines ambush marketing as a marketing strategy in which a competing...
by FIFA
FIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
as Bavaria, which was not a corporate sponsor, had not paid any money to be an official event partner. With pre-warning from FIFA officials, staff at the game versus Ivory Coast asked fans to remove the overalls upon entrance to the game and provided orange replacement shorts without any logo.
During the 2010 FIFA World Cup
2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...
, 36 women clad in orange miniskirts went to the Netherlands vs Denmark match in Johannesburg, using tickets supplied at least in part by British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
pundit and ex-footballer Robbie Earle
Robbie Earle
Robert Fitzgerald "Robbie" Earle MBE is an English-born Jamaican former international footballer who played as a midfielder. He played 578 league games in senior club football, scoring 136 goals....
. Tournament officials evicted the group en masse from the stadium upon which they were arrested and held by the Police. They were released upon talks between the management of Bavaria and FIFA.