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Royal Unibrew Group acquires Italian facility from Birra Castello
FoodBev Media

FoodBev Media

26 July 2023

Royal Unibrew Group acquires Italian facility from Birra Castello

Royal Unibrew has signed an agreement to acquire Birra Castello's production facility in San Giorgio di Nogaro, Italy. The acquisition is expected to bolster Royal Unibrew's expanding operations in Italy and international markets, while simultaneously reducing its periodic capacity constraints. The deal will "significantly enhance" Royal Unibrew's manufacturing and packaging capabilities for cans and glass bottles in Italy, as the production facility brings an estimated potential beer production capacity of up to 1 million hectolitres per year. With two filling lines, the facility will enable Royal Unibrew to expand its footprint in the country, effectively meeting the growing demand for its products both in the domestic market and its international business segment. Royal Unibrew's investment in an additional production facility in Italy complements its previous acquisition of Terme di Crodo in 2018. The Terme di Crodo facility, which was acquired from Campari, is responsible for producing Royal Unibrew's local soft drinks, such as Lemonsoda and Lemonsoda Energy Activator. According to the company, the integration of the new facility will be overseen by Royal Unibrew's Italian organisation, and "is expected to be a smooth and relatively uncomplicated process". Jan Ankersen, Royal Unibrew's SVP of south of Europe and GM Italy, said: "We are pleased to announce our acquisition of the production facility from Birra Castello. This milestone is of great significance for the continued growth of our Italian business, improving our position to fulfill the rising demand for our beverages. This acquisition also relieves capacity constraints elsewhere in the group." The expansion enables Royal Unibrew to meet the increasing demand for its beverages while overcoming production limitations within the group. The improved production setup is said to bring about more flexibility, quicker response times and better supply chain management. Through the expansion of production capacity in Italy, Royal Unibrew aims to create additional job opportunities. In addition, Royal Unibrew's Italian business will have the means to explore new partnerships and collaborations. Later this year, Royal Unibrew will take ownership of the assets after completing certain transaction-related processes. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

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