Japan may run out of its favorite Asahi beer after cyberattack

Japanese retailers are warning customers that they’re running out of Asahi Super Dry, the country’s most popular beer, following a major cyberattack on the producer.

Operations at most of Asahi factories in Japan have been paralyzed since Monday (September 29th) after a cyberattack devastated its ordering and delivery system, the company said in a statement.

Now, major Japanese retailers, including Family Mart and Lawson, are warning customers to expect shortages of Asahi products, including beer and cold teas, as Japan’s biggest brewery grapples with the impact of the attack.

“Following the cyberattack… on Asahi Group Holdings, Ltd., orders and shipments of products from Asahi Group companies have been temporarily suspended, with no prospect of resumption at this time,” Family Mart said in a statement.

It also said customers should expect shortages of Fumimaru, its own bottled tea made by Asahi, as a result.

“We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause our customers,” Family Mart, one of Japan’s biggest chains of convenience stores, said, adding that it was working with Asahi to resolve the situation.

Lawson said it expected some Asahi products to be in short supply starting today and will stock up on alternatives to minimize the impact on customers.

Another major retailer, 7-Eleven, is also warning shoppers in written notices at stores that shipments of Japan’s most popular beer and some other beverages, including its own branded products made by Asahi, have been suspended, Bloomberg reported.

Cybernews has contacted Asahi for comment.

The Japanese brewery is one of the biggest drinks companies in the world. The Tokyo-based firm owns global brands such as Peroni in Italy, Pilsner Urquell in Czechia, and Grolsch in the Netherlands.

Asahi said its operations outside Japan have not been affected by the cyberattack, but it had to suspend orders and shipments, as well as call center operations, within the country due to the “system failure.”

“At this time, there has been no confirmed leakage of personal information or customer data to external parties,” it said in the statement earlier this week.

“We are actively investigating the cause and working to restore operations; however, there is currently no estimated timeline for recovery,” it said at the time.