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Molson Coors invests in production capacity for Canadian hard seltzer business

Molson Coors Beverage Company is investing $100 million in its Canadian operations to build in-house production capability for hard seltzers, an investment that will more than quadruple the existing capacity.

The investment includes a sizable investment in its Toronto brewery to install state-of-the-art reverse osmosis and nanofiltration technology, a new flavor kitchen, a blender and a new sleek-can line. It also will help fuel commercialization efforts for its nascent portfolio of hard seltzers, including Vizzy and Coors Seltzer.

The upgrades, slated to come online in early 2022, will give the brewery capabilities to produce malt-based and spirit-based hard seltzers for the fast-growing Canada market, as well as other beverages, says Brian Erhardt, chief supply chain officer for Molson Coors. The new equipment will allow Molson Coors to increase hard seltzer production by more than 300% at full capacity.

The company projects hard seltzers to grow exponentially into a multibillion-dollar segment over the next few years in Canada, which remains in an earlier state of maturation as compared with the U.S. Adding hard seltzer capabilities in Canada are part of a broader investment plan to grow Molson Coors’ above-premium hard seltzer business across the globe.