As civil conflict continues to rage in Myanmar, the year-long boycott against military-connected Myanmar Beer has begun to turn violent.

According to AFP, bars in Yangon and a restaurant in Mandalay that continued to serve the beer were targeted with bomb attacks in March.

Local media also report that parent brewery Myanmar Brewery truck drivers have been targeted in rural areas.

The report also interviewed anonymous restaurant owners, who claimed that they’d had to request the brewery to take away Myanmar Beer-branded tables and umbrellas, due to the impact of the boycott on their sales.

While reliable figures are hard to come by for the current state of Myanmar’s beer market, multiple reports note that sales of beers from brewery firms untainted by military connections like Heineken, Chang & Carlsberg are increasing.

The situation is a dramatic change from 2019 when, according to Kirin, Myanmar Beer controlled around 80% of the country’s beer market and was a key part of Kirin’s growth strategy globally.

The Asia Brewers Network has extensively covered the saga of Kirin’s involvement in Myanmar Brewery and their withdrawal from the military-linked partnership.

Even before the civil conflict had intensified in April 2021, Frontier Myanmar had estimated demand for Myanmar Beer had declined 80%, distributors were struggling to clear stock and Myanmar Brewery was reducing the production of their beer.

Since then, the boycott has gathered momentum with social media campaigning and even offline protests (notably including one where protestors emptied Myanmar Beer onto their feet.)