“We cannot accept this situation!” In a press release published this Tuesday, the national union of independent breweries (SNBI) warns about the situation of craft brewers, who would be “on the edge” due to the rise in the prices of glass bottles.
“In this period of energy crisis, our brewing VSEs are experiencing successive non-tradable glass bottle price increases of up to 60% from January 2022. At the same time, glass bottle producing companies are announcing record profits of the +40% order”, says the union, recalling that the sector is already “badly hit” by the “strong rises” in raw materials, energy and even cardboard.
If the SNBI says it “accepts some of these unavoidable increases,” it says it cannot “accept certain categories of vendors taking advantage of this situation for record profits.” “In glass bottles, which represent two thirds of our cost price, we are experiencing increases uncorrelated with the energy context, to the exclusive benefit of the glass industry,” he laments.
“Government intervention”
According to the union, “many craft and independent breweries are in financial difficulty.” “Closures are currently announced every week and many structures plan to close at the end of the first half of the year if the situation does not improve. It is the 6,500 jobs in the craft and independent brewing sector that are at stake”, he continues.
Because “it is not conceivable to break the economic dynamism displayed” by the 2,500 craft and local breweries “over the last ten years”, the SNBI demands that the practices of the suppliers be “framed by government intervention”.
Source: BFM TV
