Despite boasting an impressive selection of 98 bottled beers and 49 draught varieties, it has come to light that the majority of offerings at the newly established Belgian Beer World, an interactive museum located within the recently renovated Belgian Stock Exchange building, primarily originate from the country’s largest beer producers.
The grand reopening of the Belgian Stock Exchange building, an iconic structure in the heart of Brussels, was celebrated just a few weeks ago, with the unveiling of the Belgian Beer World museum as one of its central attractions. Designed to serve as a hub and cultural showcase, the site aims to provide visitors with insights into the rich culture and history of Belgian beer.
However, this development has left many independent beer producers disillusioned, as they found themselves unable to afford a presence for their products within the museum.
Jean-Pierre Van Roy, the proprietor of the family-operated Cantillon beer museum, expressed his concerns in an interview with Euronews. He criticized the EU-funded Belgian Beer World and the Stock Exchange for seemingly aligning themselves with major brewers in the country to promote their products as a means of generating higher revenue.
In Van Roy’s words, “It’s not a museum. I consider that the stock market operation by the large breweries is above all a commercial operation, undoubtedly with the idea of highlighting big brands.”
This controversy highlights the challenges and tensions within the brewing industry in Belgium, where smaller, independent brewers often grapple with limited access to venues and platforms that predominantly feature products from larger, more established beer producers.
