JAPAN: Kirin Holdings, Asahi battle to restore operations

Japanese brewers are working to get production back online in time for the summer months, halting sales of some brands to focus on core offerings.

Summer provides an opportunity to stem beer sales lost following last month's earthquake. "The Kirin Sendai plant, which was hit by the earthquake and tsunami, suffered damage to storage tanks, but we have confirmed now that the main brewing equipment is functioning," said Kirin Holdings spokesperson Kan Yamamoto.

"The Toride plant [Ibaraki] is not as badly damaged as we'd thought and is now running," he told just-drinks today (26 April), adding: "We think with extra production that can be done there, we can cover shortfalls from other sites."

Kirin is suspending production of nine beers beers to concentrate on producing enough of its flagship Ichiban Shibori brew.

Meanwhile, rival Asahi is taking similar steps to protect supplies of its Super Dry brand. It has a brewery at Fukushima, close to the stricken nuclear plant, but not within the radiation exclusion zone. "We're aiming to have the Fukushima plant operating again by this summer, but with aftershocks continuing, it's hard to say for sure," said an Asahi spokesperson.