Budweiser recalls beer in 12 countries

Anheuser-Busch, the world's largest brewer, has recalled 5.8 million bottles of Budweiser in 12 European countries after 10 complaints from consumers who found glass shards in their beer.

The withdrawal affects 240,000 cases of Budweiser brewed in Spain, where the US company said screw-top bottles supplied by the manufacturers had faults in the top, which sheared off when the cap was removed.

The brewer's immediate reaction was in sharp contrast to Coca-Cola's response in June to the contamination crisis that affected its soft drinks factories in Belgium and northern France and led to hundreds of complaints of illness.

Coke's European sales plummeted while it took several days to admit there was a problem and then withdraw all the affected products from the shops.

"We know what the problem is and where the cases are," said Mr Bill McNulty, head of Anheuser-Busch's European operation. "We are very confident that we can get them out of the market to protect our consumers."

He added that retaining the trust and confidence of consumers was the company's priority. The recall covers screw-top bottles sold in Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden, Latvia, Cyprus and Malta.

In Germany and Switzerland, Budweiser is sold under the Anheuser-Busch brand because its flagship name is blocked by a dispute with the Czech Budvar brewery.

A spokesman for Guinness, Budweiser's Irish distributor, confirmed that the Republic would not be affected by the recall. He said: "The particular type of twist off cap that has been found to be defective is not used in Ireland. In this country, we use a pull off cap that is manufactured separately." Mr McNulty said the recall was unlikely to have any impact on Anheuser-Busch's performance, since it involved less than 0.3 per cent of its European sales - which are only a small part of the brewer's output. The company, based in St Louis, Missouri, sells 85 per cent of its beer in the US, which is unaffected by the contamination.

Coca-Cola relies on Europe for more than 20 per cent of its volumes. The recall measures eventually imposed on it by health authorities in several countries after the June scare contributed to a second-quarter earnings drop of 21 per cent.

Anheuser-Busch's share price on the New York Stock Exchange, fell 37 1/2 US cents to $76.62 1/2 during afternoon trading. Analysts said the prompt recall and the fact that it was the bottle rather than the beer that was to blame should mean no lasting impact.

The company has introduced new checks on bottles used in the Spanish brewery that produces its beer and at the two bottle suppliers, Vicasa of Madrid and Barbosa Ameda of Portugal.

It has yet to identify which of the two was responsible for the problem, which was caused by uneven wear on the bottle moulds that left a piece of glass sticking out of the neck.