CHINA: Carlsberg signs China airline deal

Danish brewer Carlsberg has signed a distribution deal with China Southern Airlines Group to serve Carlsberg Chill on the airline's flights.

Carlsberg Chill beat Budwiser and Tsingtao, China Southern's business partners for last year, to become the only beer brand served on their international flights and in first and business class cabins of domestic flights, the brewer said yesterday (4 June).

Carlsberg has also joined with Yanjing Beer to become the designated beer brands to be served during lunch and dinner in economy cabins of domestic flights over two hours.

The agreement covers 20 cities in four major regions of China Southern. Orders have been received from Shenzhen and Jilin to date, the company said.

"Once China Southern has acquired China Northern, cooperation opportunities will broaden," Carlsberg said. "Via such cooperation with China Southern, Carlsberg can capture the opportunity of letting prestigious up-class passengers enjoy Carlsberg Chill which can further enhance its premium brand position and brand equity to compete with other companies when negotiating for similar cooperation."

Carlsberg is currently plotting expansion across markets in Asia, the Danish brewer's CEO said in an interview with the Financial Times newspaper today.

In the article, CEO Jorgen Buhl Rasmussen said that China, India and Vietnam represent particularly big opportunities for beer sales growth.