Australians drank less beer in 2011 causing a 6 per cent decline in domestic beer consumption. Despite this development, brewer Coopers expanded its market share by 1.5 per cent and produced a record 62.9 million litres of beer.

However, even if Coopers Brewery increased its market share to 4 per cent, it still posted slightly lower yearly sales to $173 million in the past 12 months to June 30 from $179 million the previous year. As a result, the company's net profit declined to $23 million from $23.5 million, Coopers Managing Director Dr Tim Cooper disclosed on Thursday.

He said that the company logged a 10 per cent compound yearly growth in volume of beer sold for the last 15 years. However, 2011 will be a landmark year for Coopers because it ended a three-decade relationship with supermarket chain Coles which stopped selling home brew kits this year.

But after a few months, Coopers' home brew products were restored in 120 supermarkets which is just about 25 per cent of all Coles' outlets.

Coopers, which is celebrating its 150th year in business, recently signed licensing deals with foreign brewers after it won a contract with Japan's Sapporo in the early part of 2011.

This is also the year that there are changes in ownership in Australia's beer industry. Foster's lost the Australian licence for Stella Artois to competitor Lion after the latter's parent firm, AB-inBen, used change of control provisions to end its contract after Foster's takeover by SABMiller.

"We're holding our own in volume terms in a declining market, but like Foster's and Lion have said, the summer was a bad one in the eastern states and there were floods and cyclones, as well as higher interest rates in November last year," The Australian quoted Mr Cooper.

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