Carlsberg spent HK$65M on a Hong Kong brewery — then closed it when costs bit

Carlsberg opened its Tai Po brewery in Hong Kong on 28 April 1981 — the Danish brewer's first production facility in Asia. The brewery was built to serve the Hong Kong market and nearby export markets with locally produced Carlsberg and Tuborg beers. In 1993, Carlsberg invested HK$65 million in an extension, signalling confidence in the Hong Kong operation.

Six years later, in March 1999, Carlsberg announced it would close the Tai Po brewery. The closure was completed the following month, in April 1999. All 73 workers were laid off. Production was transferred to Carlsberg's brewery in Huizhou, Guangdong province, mainland China, where costs were significantly lower.

The closure was driven by two factors. Hong Kong's operating costs — rent, labour, utilities — had risen sharply over the 1990s, making the city an expensive place to brew mass-market beer. The 1997 Asian financial crisis had deepened the recession, compressing margins further. Carlsberg said the closure was 'in an effort to improve profitability.'