Japan’s Kirin to sell China joint venture to investment fund

Kirin is selling its China soft drinks joint venture to an investment fund, the Japanese beer and beverage maker said yesterday.

The move comes shortly after Kirin decided to pull out of a joint venture brewery in Myanmar. 

The sale to Plateau Consumer, a Chinese fund, for 115 billion yen ($994 million) covers Kirin’s entire 40% stake in China Resources Kirin Beverages, Tokyo-based Kirin said in a statement. 

The joint venture, established in 2011, had been expanding its business in China, making bottled water and bottled tea, according to Kirin Holdings Co. 

Kirin said the move was part of its recent decision to review its investment portfolio, including foreign operations, under a management plan that runs through 2024. 

The plan has the company focusing on certain areas, including pharmaceuticals and health science as well as food and beverages. 

More recently, Kirin has been trying to streamline its sprawling operations to focus on projects like developing drugs for diseases that have no existing treatments, and working on what Kirin calls LC-Plasma to offer health products that help maintain immune systems. 

Kirin is among Japan’s top beer brands, but beer companies here have in recent decades expanded into other kinds of beverages. It still has various global operations, including Four Roses Distillery in the U.S. and San Miguel Brewery in the Philippines. MDT/AP