Sapporo eyes review amid shareholder pressure

Big brewery: A file picture of a Sapporo beer factory. 3D, which owns 3.05% of Sapporo, has criticised the firm for undue focus on the real estate business. — Reuters

TOKYO: Sapporo Holdings says that it has set up a committee to conduct a strategic review of the business, as the Japanese beer group comes under pressure from shareholders dissatisfied with stagnant growth.

The committee consists of five Sapporo directors and two external experts: Takehiko Ogi, former managing director of the now defunct government-run Industrial Revitalisation Corp of Japan, and Ryotaro Fujii, senior adviser at private equity firm Permira, a company spokesperson said.