Orion Beer, the sole full-scale beer brewer on Okinawa, saw sales overseas in fiscal 2015 soar 41.5 percent from a year before.

Orion exported a total of 2,488 kiloliters of its beer to overseas markets earning ¥380.7 million, a 38.1 percent increase from the year before. Both the volume and value have increased for six consecutive years.

Officials at Orion Beer say that the sharp increase in overseas visitors to Okinawa is helping them to make their brand familiar in overseas markets as tourists who have visited Okinawa and tried Orion beer are likely to purchase the product where available when they return home. The brewery is also engaging in active promotion efforts in those markets.

According to Okinawa Customs, beer exports from Okinawa have increased four-fold from 2010, and it’s one of the main products in daily grocery category exported from Okinawa.

The biggest overseas market for Orion is Taiwan that bought 1,367 kilolitera of the suds worth ¥181.11 million. The second is the United States with 545 kiloliters at ¥105.14 million and Hong Kong being the third largest buyer with 258 kiloliters valued at ¥45 million.

Recently, Orion Beer has started active promotion campaigns in Russia and New Zealand, and the sales in Taiwan are expanding. In February, the company opened its first overseas branch office in Taiwan, where Orion Draft is now sold in major convenience store chains.

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