December 18 (SeeNews) - The Union of Brewers in Bulgaria (UBB) said on Tuesday its members sold 260,585 hectolitres of beer in November, accumulating eleven-month sales of some 5.032 million hectoliters, up by 11.1% from a year earlier.
The November beer sales of the UBB members rose by 7.6% year-on-year.
The actual volume of beer sales in the southeast European country of 7.7 million people is believed to be higher because the Ledenika & MM brewery, which has an estimated market share of up to 10%, is not member of the union.
Dutch Heineken's Zagorka brewery topped sales among UBB members with 1.6 million hectolitres sold in the eleven months through November. The brewery sells the Zagorka, Zagorka Gold, Amstel, Heineken, Murphy's, Ariana and Stolichno beer brands.
InBev's Kamenitza followed with 1.446 million hectolitres sold over the period. It sells the Kamenitza, Astika, Burgasko Pivo, Pleven, Slavena, Stella Artois, Beck's and Staropramen brands.
Third came Danish group Carlsberg, which sold 1.331 million hectolitres of its Shumensko, Pirinsko, Carlsberg and Tuborg beer brands between January and November.
The Boliarka, Lomsko Pivo and Agrima breweries occupied the bottom three positions in UBB's sales table.
The UBB members sold a total of 5.22 million hectoliters of beer last year, up by 9.2% from 2005. This growth of Bulgaria’s beer market was largely anticipated after a hot summer and the launch of new brands.