Hue Brewery talks down rumour

After nearly a year under the management of Denmark-based Carlsberg Group, which acquired the remaining 50 per cent stake in the brewery last October from Thua Thien-Hue People’s Committee, the company made great strides in business and production relevant to its chief brand Huda beer.
New products were rolled out and won plaudits from consumers such as canned and bottled Huda beer and canned Festival beer totally brewed from barley.

The company’s production output hiked 25 per cent on-year in the first six months of 2012.

However, the last two months were tough for the company when it became a victim of groundless rumours that its beverage was contaminated with toxics after being transferred to a Chinese partner.
Its sales figures took a plunge. In the past two weeks, beer consumption in central Quang Binh and Quang Tri provinces shed 20 per cent and this downward trend is spreading.

Hue Brewery’s general director Nguyen Mau Chi confirmed the quality of all the company’s products was strictly supervised by the Danish company  and rumours  the beer was contaminated with toxics were baseless.

“It’s a false rumour, which was created by our rivals to compete for market share,” Chi said.
Chi said all the company’s human resources were under the agreement with the Danish firm and these would be kept stable during 2011-2016. “Carlsberg has no plan to sell Hue Brewery to other partners,” Chi said.

Thua Thien-Hue Department of Planning and Investment, which granted investment certificate to the brewery, also confirmed Hue Brewery’s business registration certificate was still held by Carlsberg and had yet to be transferred to other partners.

In respect to what will be the best-case scenario for Hue Brewery in dealing with the rumour, Vietnam Standards and Consumers Association deputy chairman Nguyen Manh Hung suggested the brewery   find a prestigious scientist or a leading expert to act as its spokesperson. Building and making public a video clip describing Huda beer entire production process, from the phase of material selection to end product control is also a wise move.