Diageo targets China's contribution at 5% of sales in 10 years

Singapore

DIAGEO plc wants China to contribute 5 per cent of sales in the next 10 years, and to do so the beverage maker will need to convince locals to pour Scotch with dinner instead of the local speciality, baijiu.

Baijiu, a searing white liquor, has been the drink of choice at Chinese banquets for decades. The sorghum-based spirit is mainly consumed at mealtimes and accounts for more than half the value of alcoholic beverages sold in the country, Sam Fischer, Diageo's president for greater China and Asia, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television.