Hoegaarden white beer in short supply

4 May 2007

BRUSSELS –The supplies of Hoegaarden’s white beer have completely dried up at supermarkets Delhaize and Carrefour and at many bars and pubs throughout the country.

Not because the beer has been selling so fast, but because InBev is struggling with brewing and packaging problems with Flanders’ most popular beer on the terraces, Het Laatste Nieuws reports today.

The unions say moving production of the beer to the Walloon location of Jupille has caused the problems. “The beer they produce there often has to be thrown out because it is not at all fit for consumption. So a lot of the white beer coming from Jupille is being shipped to the Netherlands to be made into pig feed. It really is a crisis,” the unions say.

InBev says that a “local” problem with packaging is responsible for the shortage. “We are indeed having difficulties making capacity, but that has nothing to do with any brewing problems in Jupille,” says spokesperson Lian Verhoeven.

Subject: Belgian news