It can be said that the beverage industry was one of the industries heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021. Before 2020 Vietnam's food and beverage (F&B) market continuously grew and was assessed to have great potential, with a predicted annual growth rate (CAGR) in 2021-2025 of 4.98%. The market was expected to reach USD 678 million with a concomitant number of consumers of around 17.1 million by 2025. However, COVID-19 caused many companies in the industry to fight for survival. During the outbreak commencing April 2021 that peaked in July/August, the rate of severely affected businesses was over 91%.
Businesses have now returned to normal production by flexibly and safely adapting to the pandemic,
restoring production and business capacity. Companies report that the market is growing again, despite difficulties.
2021 was a turbulent year for the Vietnamese economy in general and for the beverage business in particular. However, this also opens up new opportunities for discerning investors and business owners with a strategic vision of the future. New consumption trends are expected to become a growth engine for beverage industry enterprises in 2022.
SSI Research estimates that in 2022, the beverage industry will have many opportunities to grow again, thanks to rapidly increasing demand after the reopening of society.
The Vietnam Country Report 2022 prepared by VietnamCredit revealed the top 10 companies in the beverage industry of Vietnam in 2021.
Heineken Vietnam Brewery Limited Company ranked first in the list of Vietnam’s top beverage companies in 2021. Established in 1991, the company is a joint venture between Heineken and Saigon Trading Group. Heineken currently creates more than 180,000 jobs throughout the value chain and contributes the equivalent of 0.9% of the country's GDP. The net sales of Heineken Vietnam in 2021 were VND 31,588,192,525,457.
The Saigon Beer - Alcohol – Beverage Corporation (Sabeco) ranked second with VND 27,961,323,837,011 of net sales.
In the second quarter of 2022, Sabeco announced second-quarter net revenue of more than VND 9,000 billion, up 25% over the same period last year. This sales level is Sabeco's best in a quarter from 2020 to now. Sabeco's profit after tax reached nearly VND 1,800 billion, an increase of 67% compared to the same period in 2021. This result also helped the company have the highest profit quarter in history.
In third place is Suntory Pepsico Vietnam Beverage Co., Ltd. The company is an alliance between PepsiCo Inc. and Suntory Holdings Limited, officially established in 2013, 100% owned by foreign capital. The company’s net sales in 2021 were VND 17,253,113,897,000.
Nestlé Vietnam Limited ranked fourth on the list of top 10 beverage companies in Vietnam. The company had net sales of VND 15,422,737,332,000 in 2021. Followed in fifth place is Coca-Cola Beverages Viet Nam Limited Liability Company, with net sales of VND 7,998,313,000,908.
In the remaining spots on the list are Hanoi Beer Alcohol and Beverage Joint Stock Corporation in sixth place (net sales VND 7,452,592,109,444), URC Vietnam Company Limited in seventh place (net sales VND 5,271,421,656,524), Tan Hiep Phat Trading – Service Company Limited in eighth place (net sales VND 4,259,596,702,274). Carlsberg Vietnam Breweries Limited and La Vie Limited Liability Company ranked ninth and tenth, with net sales of VND 2,941,747,955,018 and VND 2,249,118,000,000, respectively.