Kirin Holdings Co. agreed to acquire a minority stake in Brooklyn Brewery, marking a rare investment by an Asian company in the $22 billion U.S. craft lager industry.
Kirin and Brooklyn Brewery will form a joint venture in January 2017 to roll out the Brooklyn brand in Japan, with plans to expand to Brazil, the companies said. Privately-held Brooklyn Brewery will issue new shares to Kirin Brewery Co., giving the Japanese company a stake of about 25 percent. They didn't disclose the value of the deal.
Kirin and other Japanese breweries have been experimenting with specialty brews as craft beer gains popularity in Japan. It's one of the few bright spots for the beer industry in Japan, where a declining population has seen consumption slump since 2001. Kirin is competing against some of the world's largest breweries to expand overseas, including a possible stake in Vietnam's top brewer.