The Lao Brewery Company Ltd. (L.B.C.) (ບໍລິສັັັດ ເບຍລາວ ຈໍາກັດ Bolisad Beerlao Chamkad) is a producer of beer

Beer

Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...

 and bottled drinking water

Water

Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...

 in Laos

Laos

Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...

 headquartered in Vientiane

Vientiane

-Geography:Vientiane is situated on a bend of the Mekong river, which forms the border with Thailand at this point.-Climate:Vientiane features a tropical wet and dry climate with a distinct monsoon season and a dry season. Vientiane’s dry season spans from November through March. April marks the...

.

History

Founded in 1971, the Lao Brewery Company was at that time a joint-venture between French and Lao businessmen. It took up production in 1973 with a capacity of 3 million liters per year. The company, then called Brasseries et Glacières du Laos (BGL), marketed Bière Larue for the local market and "33" export for export (to countries in Indochina).

With the establishment of the Lao PDR in 1975, the company was nationalized and obtained the status of a state-owned enterprise. It marketed its beer first under the Bière Lao

Beerlao

Beerlao is the name of a range of beers produced by the Lao Brewery Company of Vientiane, Laos.- Beerlao :...

, brand then (early 1995) as Beerlao. Their brand "33" export was marketed till 1990, and Bière Larue till 1995.

In the wake of the 1986 economic reform program, which initiated a transition from central planning to a market economy

Market economy

A market economy is an economy in which the prices of goods and services are determined in a free price system. This is often contrasted with a state-directed or planned economy. Market economies can range from hypothetically pure laissez-faire variants to an assortment of real-world mixed...

 and the launching of the New Economic Mechanism (NEM), the LBC in 1993 entered into a joint venture: 49% Lao government-owned with 51% foreign investment (Loxley: 25.5% and Italian: 25.5%) with a production capacity of 20 million liters per year (employees: 300).

In 2002, the foreign investors withdrew their share from LBC, and the Lao government regained total control of the company. Subsequently, Carlsberg and TCC, a Thai company which is Carlsberg's partner in Thailand, each acquired a 25% share in LBC. The remaining shares are still held by the government of Laos. The maximum capacity at that time was 60 million liters.

In 2005, the company increased its annual production capacity to 85 million liters, and in 2007 to 160 million liters. It now has about 500 employees. Recently, a new factory was opened in Pakse with a capacity of 100 million liters per year.

In 2005, ownership when through a change once again with the Lao government still owning 50% and the remaining 50% owned by Carlsberg.

All machinery is imported from Europe. The company processes locally grown rice

Rice

Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...

 and imports malt

Malt

Malt is germinated cereal grains that have been dried in a process known as "malting". The grains are made to germinate by soaking in water, and are then halted from germinating further by drying with hot air...

ed barley

Barley

Barley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...

 from France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 and Belgium

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

, and hops

Hops

Hops are the female flower clusters , of a hop species, Humulus lupulus. They are used primarily as a flavoring and stability agent in beer, to which they impart a bitter, tangy flavor, though hops are also used for various purposes in other beverages and herbal medicine...

 and yeast

Yeast

Yeasts are eukaryotic micro-organisms classified in the kingdom Fungi, with 1,500 species currently described estimated to be only 1% of all fungal species. Most reproduce asexually by mitosis, and many do so by an asymmetric division process called budding...

 from Germany.

Products

The company produces and markets 3 types of beer under the Beerlao

Beerlao

Beerlao is the name of a range of beers produced by the Lao Brewery Company of Vientiane, Laos.- Beerlao :...

brand (Beerlao Lager, Beerlao Light and Beerlao Dark), and locally-brewed Carlsberg lager. It also produces and markets bottled drinking water under the Tiger Head brand.

LBC claims it has a market share of the local beer market of 99%. Beerlao is exported to a dozen countries, but the export figures are still modest, though increasing.