Second price hike of the year for Coors

Coors Brewers has been forced to raise its prices for the second time this year in the wake of rising costs that could “cripple” the beer industry. Coors has announced its 3p per pint rise in response to the spiralling costs of beer production.

Barley, diesel, metal and energy have all risen well above inflation according to Mark Hunter, chief executive of Coors, one the UK’s biggest purchasers of British brewing ingredients.

Hunter said: “We are seeing input cost inflation of a magnitude that could cripple the UK beer industry. Barley for instance, has gone up by more than 40% in the last year. It is no longer tenable to fully absorb the rate of input cost inflation.”

The second rise will come into effect at the end of September. When Coors increased its on-trade prices by 4p per pint in February this year, it warned customers that in the current economic climate an additional price increase may be unavoidable.

“We have battled hard against the current trading environment with the support of our customers and a strong brand portfolio, but the severity of the inflationary increases since the beginning of 2008 has exceeded expectations. These are extraordinary times for beer,” added Hunter.

Jane Parkinson 03/09/08