Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This year marks the 150th anniversary of the founding of Coopers Brewery. This milestone is especially significant because with the recent takeover of Foster's Group by the South African brewer SABMiller, Coopers has become the largest Australian owned brewery.

According to figures recently published in Beer and Brewer, the only beer manufactured by an Australian owned company in the 15 highest selling Australian beers was Coopers Pale Ale, the only Australian beer in the top 10 premium beers was Coopers Sparkling Ale, and Coopers Mild Ale was one of two Australian beers in the top 10 midstrength beers. Coopers now occupies a proud position as the leading Australian owned brewery.

Coopers is a very large and successful Australian owned and family business. It remains owned by the Cooper family. In fact, Glenn Cooper is its chairman and Tim Cooper is its managing director—both of whom are sixth generation descendants of Thomas Cooper, the brewery's founder. The brewery was originally located in Norwood, but for most of its existence it was based in my electorate in Leabrook. It has now moved to Regency Park. Its operations incorporate a number of green initiatives, including using saline groundwater instead of mains water, extensive water and energy recycling and its own gas fired cogeneration plant. The company is also active in the South Australian community and has donated more than $1.3 million to worthy causes since it was founded. (Time expired)