ASEAN Focus: Carlsberg Malaysia, Carabao Thailand, Vietnam beverage taxes and more feature in our round-up

Lager leap: Carlsberg Malaysia launches new 1664 Brut to capture wider beer audience​

Carlsberg Malaysia has expanded its 1664 premium beer portfolio with a new lager offering, hoping to appeal to a wider consumer segment with its ASEAN-first launch into this new category.

The brewery owns exclusive rights to the 1664 French beer brand outside of the United Kingdom, including in Malaysia and Singapore, and so far has only sold the 1664 Blanc and 1664 Rosé wheat beers  in these markets.

In an attempt to widen its reach, Carlsberg Malaysia has introduced the new 1664 Brut lager beer to the local market, taking a multi-format approach by launching this across both retail and foodservice.

“We mean for 1664 Brut to appeal to premium beer drinkers that are looking for lager products, it has a different taste profile with a different edge and a twist to it compared to the well-known 1664 Blanc wheat beer,”​ Carlsberg Malaysia Managing Director Stefano Clini told FoodNavigator-Asia​.

Breaking into beer: Carabao seeks to take on Thailand’s dominant players with varied portfolio​

Thai energy drink heavyweight Carabao is looking to move beyond its comfort zone and stake claim on a piece of the local beer market, banking on a bold multi-variant launch strategy to draw in consumers.

Carabao is one of the most dominant energy drink players in Thailand alongside main competitor Red Bull, but is relatively new to the alcohol space with its Tawandang German Brewery focusing on beers, and Tawandang distillery​ focusing on liquors from rum to whiskey which was launched only in 2023.

This year, the firm is looking to invest more effort into the growth of its beer category, an ambitious feat given that the local beer market has long been dominated by the Singha and Chang brands, and it will require no small effort to stake a claim of this pie.

“Our beer competitors have been in the market for many years and are basically everywhere – and at the time they went to market, it was legal to advertise alcohol so marketing and expansion was direct, now this is no longer the case,” ​Carabao group Deputy Managing Director and Chief Productions Officer Kamoldist Smuthkochorn told FoodNavigator-Asia​ at the recent Thaifex-Anuga Asia 2024 trade show.

Huge tax hikes: Vietnam proposes phased 100% alcohol tax rise, 10% for sugar-sweetened drinks​

The Vietnamese government has drafted new regulations proposing a phased increase on excise taxes for alcoholic beverages to 100% by 2030 as well as 10% for sugar-sweetened beverages, in attempts to curb overconsumption as well as boosting national income.

Vietnam is well-known for having very affordable alcoholic beverage prices, with beers in particular costing well below US$1 at most supermarkets and eateries.

The local government believes that such affordable prices have contributed to high consumption amongst consumers, and that it is now necessary to increase taxation on these drinks to ensure public health is not compromised.

“Higher taxation is necessary in order to reduce the consumption of alcohol in Vietnam,”​ the local Ministry of Finance said via a formal statement outlining its new draft regulations.

Egg advances: Mondelez on why Vietnam provided great opportunity for cage-free egg adoption​

Mondelez has highlighted several of the key factors that needed to be in place for its adoption of cage-free eggs in its leading cake brand in Vietnam.

Cage-free eggs have been a major topic of discussion when it comes to supply chain transformation and sustainability in Asia, particularly in recent discussions between Malaysia​ and China​.

Many major retailers and brands from AEON to Nestle have made commitments to switch to 100% cage-free egg purchasing over the next few years, but there remain various hurdles in place when it comes to actual implementation.

And according to global snacking leader Mondelez, there are actually various touchpoints and drivers that must be considered before making the switch.

Imports expedition: Philippines launches new digital ‘pre-border’ verification system for food products​

The Philippines government has launched a new digital ‘pre-border’ verification and payment system for food and other product imports to improve efficiency, with the scheme to be headed by a multi-ministry committee.

Many markets in Asia have implemented new digital imports systems in the past few years in order to cope with logistics changes and customs congestion issues at their borders, from Thailand​ to South Korea​.

The Philippines is the latest market to join this digital transformation shift, and similar with most of the previous markets, will be initiating its new digital system for the import of agricultural, food and beverage products.

“This implementation of a pre-border technical verification of imported goods aims to expedite the inspection of products entering the country and further strengthen national security, safeguard consumer rights and protect the environment against sub-standard and dangerous imports,”​ Office of the President Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said via a formal statement.