Melbourne, 12 April 2018. Melbourne Bitter is pleased to present ‘Eskybition’; a collaboration with some of Melbourne’s finest illustrative artists to produce a series of hand-painted, classic, Aussie Eskys.

Eskybition will take place at Melbourne’s RVCA Gallery, 82 Stanley St Collingwood VIC, opening Friday, April 13. 

The ‘Eskybition’ group show adopts the concept of upcycling; the process of transforming waste materials, useless, or unwanted products into new products of better quality or for better environmental value.

A bunch of humble, much-loved eskys that have seen better days (sourced from Gumtree, eBay, vintage and charity stores) have been gifted a literal and aesthetic rebirth.

Painstakingly hand painted by the likes of tattoo artist Clare Hampshire, heralded street artist Andy Murphy, screen-printer and illustrator Steve Cohen, and several other exceptional artistic talents, they meld the iconic Esky brand with another homegrown icon: Melbourne Bitter.

Two nostalgic names are updated skillfully and irreverently throughout this diverse and distinctly Melbourne exhibition.

Make your way to RVCA Gallery, enjoy an icy cold Melbourne Bitter and perhaps pick up one of these beauties for yourself at the silent auction. 

All proceeds from sales will be donated to Support Act to assist musicians and artists in crisis.

Further details here.

Melbourne, 20 March 2018

Australia’s leading brewer, Carlton & United Breweries (CUB), is today taking a significant step towards sourcing 100 per cent of its electricity from renewables.

CUB is adopting renewable energy as the way forward with the signing of a 12-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with German renewable energy developer, service provider and wholesaler, BayWa r.e.

BayWa r.e. will provide 74,000 MWh per year of renewable energy, enough to power 7,500 homes, sourced from its solar farm in Mildura, Victoria. CUB’s partnership with BayWa r.e. will create up to 300 jobs through construction and opportunities for long term employment through the solar farm’s ongoing operation and maintenance.

CUB CEO, Jan Craps, said, “This represents an important step in CUB’s commitment to 100 per cent of its electricity being sourced from renewables.

“As one of Australia’s first and leading manufacturing businesses, we have a responsibility to ensure we play our part in tackling climate change and a range of environmental challenges.”

CUB is also moving towards onsite solar generation, which will see solar panels on the roofs at each of our breweries.

CUB is absolutely committed to delivering on an ambitious environmental and sustainability agenda. Already our Yatala brewery is a world leader in water efficiency, and the move to 100 per cent renewable electricity solidifies our sustainability commitment.

Mr Craps said the company is reducing its environmental footprint while also gaining access to reliable and affordable power:

“Beyond our driving commitment to reduce our emissions, the investment also stacks up when you look at the reduced price we will pay to power our operations. Moving to renewable energy will ensure that we have certainty of supply and pricing, something that is incredibly important for a manufacturing business like ours.”

Sites will remain connected to the grid, allowing excess capacity to be fed back into the system.

Construction of the 112 MW solar farm is underway and BayWa r.e. has already self-financed and constructed the 4km grid connection. It will be built by Melbourne-based Beon Energy Solutions.

Matthias Taft, Board Member of BayWa AG with responsibility for the energy business, commented:

“BayWa r.e. is delighted to be helping CUB to achieve its renewable energy goals.

“For BayWa r.e., the partnership with CUB represents another success in Australia. Since entering the market, BayWa r.e. is now active in solar and wind project development and the solar installer wholesaler market.”

Hobart, 25 February 2018. Cascade is delighted to announce a major upgrade of its brewery.

Cascade’s upgrade will secure its future and realise Carlton & United Breweries’ vision for Cascade and Tasmania to become our craft brewing hub for the Asia Pacific region.

CUB is making a $10.3 million capital investment to significantly increase Cascade’s brewing capability and launch Cascade as one of Australia’s leading craft breweries. The brewing upgrade will result in a 65 per cent increase in production at Cascade.

We are particularly grateful to the Tasmanian Government who has backed our vision for Cascade with a $1 million contribution to this significant upgrade.

Cascade will expand its craft brewing options, including brewing experimental beers for our Australian and Asia Pacific region operations. It will also brew a number of beers from some of the world’s leading craft brands.

The beers brewed at Cascade will be distributed to all Australian states, with some exported to the Asia Pacific region. This is good news for Tasmania’s local economy and jobs.

The expansion will secure Cascade’s existing jobs, while also creating jobs in the construction phase and five new ongoing full-time jobs.

“We are thrilled that Cascade will become CUB’s craft brewing hub for the Asia Pacific region. It is testimony to our long-term confidence in Cascade, Hobart and Tasmania”, said Mr Jan Craps, CEO of CUB.

CUB selected Cascade to lead our growth in craft beer for a number of reasons. “We love Tasmania’s vibrancy and confidence and its world renowned reputation for clean food and drink. We’re also backing our team of experienced brewers at Cascade to take us to the next level. We’re going to build on a heritage that commenced when Cascade first brewed for Tasmanians in 1832,” Mr Craps said.

First female Cascade Brewery Manager

We are also proud to announce today the appointment of Anita Holdsworth as Cascade’s new brewery manager. Anita has been selected to lead Cascade’s upgrade and our craft brewing vision.

Anita is the first female to be Cascade’s brewery manager. “Anita brings to the role a dynamic passionate leadership style, perfectly suited to the challenge and the opportunity of growing Cascade as CUB’s craft hub”, Mr Craps said.

Anita started her career working in medical genetics research, moving then into microbiology and chemistry before transitioning to manufacturing. Anita currently leads a diverse brewing and quality team for CUB in Australia, which includes chemists, microbiologists, packaging and brewing specialists.

“I can’t wait to start on this exciting transformation of Cascade. We’re going to do great things building on Cascade’s heritage”, Ms Holdsworth said.

‘I’m excited to have the opportunity to build more partnerships with local Tasmanian companies and connect with local communities. This starts with using even more great, fresh Tasmanian ingredients in our beers and ciders. ”

Pirate Life is set to continue its unprecedented growth path after being acquired by AB InBev.

Pirate Life co- founder, Jack Cameron, said the partnership would help them share great quality beer with more people and focus on their brand, people and customers by providing team Pirate Life with new facilities and expertise.

“Looking back at what we set out to do when we started in 2015, we aimed ‘to be an exciting and challenging new company brewing internationally recognised beer that excites and challenges the lifestyles and palates of beer drinkers globally.’ Continuing with this philosophy, our new partnership helps us take our dream to a level we could never imagine and push ourselves and our beers further,” Jack Cameron said.

Jan Craps, President of AB InBev’s Asia Pacific South Zone, said Pirate Life’s lifestyle-driven brand complements and contributes to the world’s leading brewers’ existing portfolio.

“With its focus on canned packaging that gives consumers fresh, well-crafted beers and consistent quality, Pirate Life has resonated with Australian beer drinkers who want something different.”

“Pirate Life’s brand is premised on a carefree and relaxed attitude and the ability to create great beers. This approach can only be enhanced with a new brewery, access to ingredients and shared knowledge from other AB InBev brewers in Australia and elsewhere.”

The acquisition will enable further innovation for the brewers through a capital investment in a new brewery, with Pirate Life’s current brewery in Hindmarsh becoming a site dedicated to creating new beers, including sours, seasonal and barrel-aged products.

“We have a lot to offer each other and our joint growth plans will commence immediately with a $10m investment in an exciting new South Australian brewery that will benefit the local economy and see more beer lovers live the Pirate Life,” Mr Craps said.

Pirate Life Co-Founder and Chief Brewer, Jared ‘Red’ Proudfoot, said he looked forward to getting the new brewery built, with better equipment to further drive consistency and quality, and to having the freedom at the Hindmarsh site to get creative.

“The reality is we have run out of capacity at Hindmarsh. With this partnership we’re in a fortunate position to upgrade to a new, bigger brewery while dedicating Hindmarsh to innovate and craft a whole range of new styles to make sure we keep pushing the boundaries and evolving.”

Jack was excited at the opportunity for the Pirate Life team around Australia to be part of a global network of brewers and the benefits it will bring to the team in terms of training, education and career development.

“We’ve always believed in and understood what brewers like AB InBev can contribute to the craft beer world with their experience, knowledge, funding and expertise in every aspect of the industry. Good beer is good beer and we believe that our beers are only going to get better.” Jack said.

“Our whole team are sticking around and it’s invaluable for all of us to be able to benefit from the knowledge and skills of some of the best brewers in the world.”

“We were recently able to visit the 10 Barrel Brewing brewpub in the US which really brought to light the value of global shared learning and their approach to hospitality venues. It’s going to be epic to work with the likes of these brewers and I’m incredibly excited that from next year Pirate Life fans will be able to enjoy our beers at our new venue.”

Carlton & United Breweries and AB InBev are pleased to announce the winners from the first ever Hack the World event held in Melbourne. The event attracted 60 of Melbourne’s brightest data scientists, software developers, innovators and engineers to create solutions for real world problems.

Teams were tasked to solve a series of problems, with just 36 hours to come up with a solution and mentoring from tech companies Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Aruba, to help leverage new technologies and make their ideas a reality. Three winning ideas emerged from the weekend:

Grand Prize – Beer Baron
An AR app, which interacts with your beer at the bar. The brand of your beer will create unique interactions with your beer bottle using AR technology, which you can record and send to your mates.

Best Consumer solution – PartyBesty
The app that tracks exactly how much alcohol you’re drinking during the night. By simply taking a picture of your drink label or barcode, the app uses AI to identify what you’re drinking and how much alcohol is in it.  The app also uses chatbot technology, which will call you to check-in, and if you need to call it a night, the app can call an Uber or your mates.

Best Customer solution – Txttobeer
The ultimate convenience tool in the bar, which combines the best of chatbot technology, allowing you to order drinks via text message and have it delivered to your table.

On the winners, AB InBev’s VP of Solutions for Asia Pacific South, Ken Cousins, said he was impressed by the talent and ideas he saw over the weekend.

“Over our Hack the World weekend, teams developed innovative prototypes to solve real world problems, we’re proud to have created this opportunity for future technology leaders to come together and compete.”

“Leveraging new technology like AR, chatbots is the way of the future, it’s an exciting space to be in, and these were exciting people to work with.” Mr Cousins said.

The winning team, Beer Baron received a prize of $10,000 to develop their app and an AWS device for every team member. While PartyBesty and Txttobeer won $5,000 of AWS credit.

Hack the World is AB InBev’s innovation platform and global community through which it commits to work with start-ups, innovators, entrepreneurs and students, building solutions to bring people together for a better world.

In a move likely to see Tigers fans queuing at their local bottle shops and pubs, CUB will launch a limited edition “Richmond Draught” Premiers can to celebrate their historic Grand Final win.

CUB Senior Marketing Manager, Sian Sullivan, said the Richmond Draught branded Carlton Draught cans were already on their way out of the warehouse and would hit the shelves in selected stores around Victoria from this Wednesday.

“With a historic victory like we saw on Saturday we thought we should definitely commemorate the occasion and give Tigers supporters something to remind them of the proud moment.”

“Our team has worked incredibly hard to get the designs done and the cans coming off the line at our brewery and into the hands of fans as fast as possible.”

“We originally looked at producing a smaller run of the limited edition cans but we soon released we’d underestimated the Tiger army, so we’ve decided to triple it.”

Richmond star Alex Rance was on hand at the CUB Abbottsford brewery to watch the first cases of Richmond Draught being canned and to add his autograph to a lucky few.

“Just when we thought it couldn’t get any sweeter to toast the Tiger Premiership, along comes Richmond Draught to keep the celebrations flowing,” said Rance.

“Knowing how much Tigers fans love to celebrate, slabs of Richmond Draught won’t last long.”

The limited edition cans are printed in the Richmond colours of yellow and black, and feature the final score for their 2017 Grand Final win and Norm Smith Medallist.

For media enquiries contact:

Paul Hitchins, External Communications Manager, Carlton & United Breweries

Paul.Hitchins@CUB.com.au

About CUB

Carlton & United Breweries (CUB) is one of the most iconic beer companies in Australia with our history dating back to 1832.

We brew some of Australia’s most famous beers, including Victoria Bitter, Carlton Draught, Crown Lager, Pure Blonde, Cascade, The Yak Ales, Great Northern as well as ciders including Mercury, Little Green and Bonamy’s. Our stable of brands includes global and premium beer brands such as Corona, Budweiser, Stella Artois.

CUB is a part of the AB InBev family.

Carlton & United Breweries (CUB), in partnership with CUB’s global company, AB InBev, today announced they will be bringing the first ever Hack the World event to Melbourne.

Hack the World is AB InBev’s innovation platform and global community through which it commits to work with start-ups, innovators, entrepreneurs and students, building solutions to bring people together for a better world.

The first Australian Hack the World event is looking for innovators, data scientists and entrepreneurs to hack the world together and find solutions to real business problems from 7- 8 October.

Sponsored and hosted by CUB at the company’s head office in Southbank, Melbourne, the event is partnered by Amazon Web Services (AWS), Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company, and organised by AngelHack.

AB InBev’s VP of Solutions for Asia Pacific South, Ken Cousins, said he was excited to bring Hack the World to Melbourne and to harness the creativity and innovation of Australians for the first time through this platform.

“We want to partner with great minds to give them the environment, mentoring and a stage to showcase their talents.”

“Through 36 hours of hacking real business problems, designers, developers and idea generators will collaborate to find the most innovative solutions through leveraging new technology. Bring your analytical and technical drive – we are ready!,” Mr Cousins said.

Hack the World teams will compete to help reimagine how to engage and transact with customers and consumers, to push the boundaries of what’s possible and help CUB shape the future of the beer industry.

Participants will have the chance to share in great prizes, including the possibility to join the talented CUB team and see their ideas rolled out through the business.

The winning team will receive a prize of $10,000 to develop their innovation and an AWS device for every team member. Other prizes include $5,000 AWS credits for both the best consumer and customer solution.

For more information on the event and for your opportunity to participate in bringing innovation to the Australian and Global beer world, please visit:

https://hacktheworld.beer/Melbourne_2017

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TcHXXicadI&t

4 Pines co-founder Jaron Mitchell says, “The reality is, we did a whip around one Friday night during after work drinks at the Truck Bar to see if we were in a position to buy AB InBev. We proposed three goats, a toasted sandwich maker and $315 in five cent coins but it just wasn’t enough to get them excited. What we did find out was that they were pretty keen to buy us.”

The deal will enable 4 Pines to expand its operations and retain and grow their people, culture and identity. 4 Pines will continue to create its iconic beer experiences from its Brookvale and Manly breweries.

The brewers’ joint aspiration is to see the unique 4 Pines identity and operations amplified to become locally famous in Australia and globally celebrated. The access 4 Pines will receive to AB InBev’s global resources will provide a platform to expedite the achievement of 4 Pines’ long term goals of customer & employee experience, environmental & social responsibility and innovation.

“When AB InBev first approached I was sceptical and didn’t think much more of it than an opportunity to nab some grand final tickets. We’ve spent the last 10 years building a business with ideals that have worked for us so far and we weren’t willing to compromise on anything. And we haven’t,” Jaron said.

“Our purpose has always been to restore the fun in people’s lives and forever challenge what the world imagines business should be. So we will keep doing what we’ve always done, except now we are able to realise our long-term goals even sooner and immediately roll out some plans that are seriously epic.”

Jan Craps, President of AB InBev’s Asia Pacific South Zone, said he was incredibly excited to be partnering with 4 Pines.

“Anyone who knows Jaron and the 4 Pines team know they do things differently, which is why we were so interested in teaming up with them.”

“4 Pines is a truly innovative business with a great range of beers, talented people and a genuine, values-driven culture which is incredibly important to us.”

“We will support their ambitious plans for the future, using our expertise and capability to help them get their exceptional beer to more people in Australia and globally.

“4 Pines brewers will continue to make beer from their breweries on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, and continue doing what they do best – having fun making some of the world’s best and most outstanding beers,” Jan Craps said.

The 4 Pines team will be unchanged and management will remain in place to help grow the business.

Enjoying a beer with friends or family is an opportunity to create great memories.

We are passionate about brewing great beers, but we know that not all consumers make smart drinking choices all of the time.

At AB InBev, we are committed to smart drinking, and we have worked over the last thirty years to raise awareness and take action to reduce the harmful use of alcohol.

Since 2010 we have celebrated Global Be(er) Responsible Day (GBRD) – a day of the year when our colleagues around the world come together with consumers, industry peers and our business and community partners to promote smart drinking and to celebrate our year-round commitment.

On 15 September this year, our GBRD focus is “Drink Smart Today, Celebrate Tomorrow.” We are actively collaborating with partners to reduce the harmful use of alcohol and celebrate smart drinking choices. By working together, we hope to create a future where every experience with beer is a positive one.

Since 2015, we have committed to four Global Smart Drinking Goals:

• Reduce the harmful use of alcohol by at least 10% in six pilot cities by the end of 2020, and implement best practices globally by the end of 2025.
• Influence social norms and individual behaviors to reduce harmful alcohol use by investing at least US$1 billion across our markets in dedicated social marketing campaigns and related programs by the end of 2025.
• Ensure no-alcohol and lower-alcohol beer products form at least 20% of our global beer volume by the end of 2025. Today, our expanding portfolio of these beers includes more than 15 brands, including Beck’s Blue, Brahma 0.0%, Jupiler 0.0%, and Corona Cero.
• Place a guidance label on all our beer products in all our markets by the end of 2020, and increase alcohol health literacy by the end of 2025.

The harmful use of alcohol remains an issue of significant concern to us, as well as to communities, governments and societies. As Carlos Brito, AB InBev CEO, notes:

“We all live on this planet together. We all drive the same roads. We all look for opportunities to enjoy the good things in life.

So it’s up to all of us to foster a culture of smart drinking globally to reduce the harmful use of alcohol. We at AB InBev are committed to doing our part.”

We know we have a role to play. And, we believe that to promote smart drinking, more needs to be done by us, our industry peers, families, civil society, and government.

We aspire for a healthier world where every experience with beer is a positive one. Let’s drink smart today to celebrate tomorrow!

#ABInBevSmartDrinking

Around 8 million tons of plastic waste enter the oceans each year.

If current marine pollution trends continue, the oceans will contain more plastic than fish by the year 2050.

These are just two reasons why, on International Recycling Day, Corona announced a partnership to help end marine plastic pollution, one of the biggest threats to the health and survival of the planet’s most important ecosystem – the world’s oceans.

Corona’s commitment
In collaboration with marine organization Parley for the Oceans, Corona has pledged to protect 100 islands from marine plastic pollution by 2020.

Parley works with the U.N., global leaders, activists and brands to reduce ocean plastic by cleaning it up, using alternative materials and finding innovative ways to upcycle waste.

The beach and ocean are Corona’s home, and the brand
is committed to protecting its heart and homeland.

The long-term partnership launches with a plan to protect islands in six key regions – Mexico, the Maldives, Australia, Chile, Italy and the Dominican Republic.

The brand has a history of engaging local communities to clean their beaches, explains Thiago Zanettini, Corona’s Global Vice President.

“Our brand is at home at the beach and we always tried our best to protect it,” he says.

“More than four years ago we started a global initiative called ‘Save the Beach’ in several countries around the world, featuring a robust network of more than 50,000 volunteers in Mexico.

“The partnership with Parley for the Oceans is an evolution of our work to protect paradise in a global, sustainable and disruptive way by focusing on protecting 100 islands – the most iconic symbols of Corona’s paradise.”

Parley’s A.I.R strategy
Corona is implementing the Parley Avoid, Intercept, Redesign strategy, from brewery and distribution to head office colleagues, with collaborative engagement at its core.

Empowering change
Corona and Parley are also engaging like-minded global ambassadors to drive awareness of the problem.

Many actors, artists, filmmakers and scientists attended Parley Ocean School in the Maldives, an immersive experience bringing together a variety of different people in the ultimate classroom, the Indian Ocean.

“The Maldives was an eye-opening experience,” said Diego Luna, actor and Corona x Parley ambassador. “You see the problem up close and you realize that we are destroying paradise through our careless use of plastic.

“All of us can be part of the solution and help our beaches and oceans by taking simple actions to use less plastic in our daily lives, recycle more, and educate the people around us to do the same.”

In addition to the pledge to protect 100 Islands, Corona is also reducing plastic use across all events, including Corona Sunsets – the worldwide series of festivals – reaching more than 350,000 consumers each year.

For more information about the Corona and Parley partnership visit: www.coronaxparley.com