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Carlsberg Breweries — a leading international brewery group 

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est increase and seems to be only marginally af- fected by the generally declining economic trends. The global rise in consumption is estimated at 1 to 2% in 2001, totalling about 1.4bn hl, correspon- ding to an average per capita consumption of 23 litres. 

Developments in consumption patterns in Carlsberg BreweriesGLYPH<213> markets vary considerably. Several mature Northern European markets regi- stered a decrease in total consumption, whereas a number of Eastern European markets in particu- lar experienced significant growth in consumption, which is in line with the general trend in recent years. In several European markets private cross- border trade in beer impacts consumption in the individual regions due to differences in excise du- ties and the general lack of market harmonisation between the countries. 

Over the past ten years, the brewing industry has experienced substantial consolidation, and during that period the ten largest brewery groups have expanded their total volume from 400m to approx. 650m hl. 

The consolidation trend continued in 2001 with increased concentration of the brewing industry. 

This trend is fuelled by generally declining con- sumption, resulting in increased pressure on earn- ings, which means that the breweries have to re- evaluate their cost structures and look for scale economies in all links of the value chain. In additi- on, increased concentration in both customer and supplier sectors is expected to further accelerate the ongoing consolidation, particularly in the ma- ture beer markets. To this must be added integra- tion and cooperation across markets and countries to achieve economies of scale within all operatio- nal areas in brewery management: production, di- stribution, sales channels and marketing, etc. 

Positioning of brands on a supra-regional and global scale is high on the agenda of the interna- tional brewing groups. 

## Carlsberg Breweries 

Following the approval of the formation of Carls- berg Breweries by the Nordic competition authori- ties, 2001 has been characterised by structural initiatives in Carlsberg BreweriesGLYPH<213> companies to secure optimisation of efficiency in the integrated beer and soft drink activities. This has particularly been the case in the Nordic region where the Fal- 

With global presence and a total volume of 67.9m hectolitres, Carlsberg Breweries is one of the worldGLYPH<213>s leading brewery groups. 

