By Clyde Mooney – editor Australian Hotelier
It has been revealed that Coca-Cola Amatil (CCA) has purchased a boutique Fijian beer through its majority-controlled Paradise Beverages.
Vonu Beer was created by two locals and is marketed as a premium hand-crafted brew, sold under the slogan “Pure Fiji rainwater turned into beer”.
The deal will help broaden CCA’s beer portfolio ahead of the global company’s entry back into the $11 billion Australian beer market in December.
CCA reports it paid $FJD7.4 ($A4.3) million for the brand, following the $FJD3.7 million it invested last year in the brewer’s plant and equipment and preceding the possible $FJD25 million it may yet spend to redress years of underinvestment.
After two years kept out of the market as part of its sale agreement of Pacific Beverages, CCA will re-enter the Australian beer market in mid-December.
Vonu Pure Lager is a premium craft beer that uses no preservatives and boasts creation from five natural ingredients, plus rainwater; malted barley, sugar, wheat, hops, yeast.
It is hoped the Fijian premium brew will strike a chord with Australian drinkers, who make up 50 per cent of the annual visitors to the Pacific island.