Australia: CCEP Divests from Beer Business With Sale of Feral Brewing

Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) Australia has announced the sale of Feral Brewing Company and its assets. The Bassendean brewing facility will be acquired by Beerfarm, while the brand itself will be sold to Nail Brewing and an investor consortium called Joint Venture Partners. This move marks CCEP's strategic decision to divest from its beer business and focus on its core non-alcoholic portfolio.

Following the purchase by Nail Brewing and Joint Venture Partners, Feral Brewing will operate as a separate business with its own sales and brewing teams, continuing to brew its products at the Bassendean facility. Nail Brewing Head Brewer and Owner, John Stallwood, who has had a long association with Feral, expressed enthusiasm about strengthening and growing the Feral brand.

Beerfarm will continue brewing at both its Metricup brewery and the newly acquired facility, focusing on creating innovative beers and expanding their R&D efforts. The Bassendean facilities will significantly expand its production capacity. Founder and Director Ian Atkins mentioned that this purchase aligns with their growth plans, allowing them to more than triple production output and pursue national and international growth.

“Feral’s Bassendean production facilities are in fantastic condition, meaning we will continue to produce the same quality of independent craft beer, just substantially more,” said Atkins.

Coca-Cola’s move into the beer and cider sector was primarily driven by Alison Watkins, who led Coca-Cola Amatil (CCA), one of the predecessors of CCEP, from March 2014 until the takeover in May 2021. Before joining CCA, she was CEO of GrainCorp, one of the leading malting companies in the world, where she gained deep insight into the beer market. In 2017, CCA acquired 100% of Feral Brewing Company in an attempt “to step into the fast-growing craft beer segment”.(inside.beer, 14.10.2017)

After the takeover of CCA by Coca-Cola European Partners and the formation of CCEP in May 2021 (inside.beer, 26.10.2020) and after the departure of Alison Watkins, CCEP announced in October 2021 its intention to exit the beer and cider market in Australia and end its cooperation with C&C Group. The agreement with Molson Coors was not renewed, and CCEP put Feral Brewing up for sale. However, it took three more years to finalize this move. (inside.beer, 28.10.2021)

The sale is expected to finalize in June. CCEP Australia will collaborating with the new owners over the next three to six months to ensure a smooth transition for staff, customers, and suppliers. Orlando Rodriguez, CCEP Australia Managing Director, explained that this divestment aligns with their focus as a bottler for The Coca-Cola Company.

“As CCEP continues to align as a bottler of our brand partner, The Coca-Cola Company, the sale of Feral Brewing Company will ensure Feral is ideally positioned for the next exciting phase of growth while enabling us to focus on our core non-alcoholic RTD portfolio. The purchasers possess the attributes to deliver the necessary scale for sustainable growth and to continue investing in the Feral team,” said Rodriguez.

Rodriguez expressed pride in the performance and journey of the Feral business, attributing much of its success to the dedicated Feral team.

 

 

This sale marks the return of Feral Brewing to independent ownership, nearly seven years after its founder, Brendan Varis, sold the brand to CCEP. Feral Brewing’s head of marketing, Jack Davidson, emphasized that it will be business as usual for the team, with staple beers like Biggie Juice, Hop Hog, Perth Local Lager, and Runt remaining in production.

The move counters a decade-long trend of large multinationals buying small, profitable independent breweries. It also aligns with recent expansions and new ventures in Western Australia’s craft beer scene, including Found Lab’s new taproom in Maylands, Fox Fridays’ first WA outpost, and the merger of Otherside and Nowhereman breweries.

Overall, this divestment allows CCEP to concentrate on its core strengths while providing a new growth trajectory for Feral Brewing under its passionate new owners.

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