You can now enjoy a cool Carlsberg… sitting in India

Danish brewer Carlsberg on Saturday uncorked its all malt premium beer in the country as it seeks to capture a pie of the premium segment of the market.

Danish brewer Carlsberg on Saturday uncorked its all malt premium beer in the country as it seeks to capture a pie of the premium segment of the market.

“By the end of this year, we are looking to launch our beer in all metro cities and in the next two to three years, it would be available across the country,” South Asia Breweries marketing director Joakim Sande told reporters.

In India, Carlsberg operates through South Asia Breweries Pvt Ltd, which manages the company’s business in Asian countries like Sri Lanka and Thailand. The company is also setting up two new breweries each in Rajasthan and Maharashtra. Besides, it has acquired Himneel Brewery in Himachal Pradesh. The company did not, however, disclose the investment it plans to make in the new breweries.

Carlsberg said it expects annual beer consumption in India to grow by more than 140 per cent by 2010. It said the per capita intake would grow to 5-6 litres a year over the next few years from the current level of about a litre because of rising incomes in the fast growing economy.