German drinks manufacturer Haus Cramer Gruppe has announced the exit of its CEO Helmut Hoerz.

The 64-year-old Hoerz, acting interim CEO and CFO since July 2021, has left the business with "immediate effect", the company said.

Haus Cramer explained that its work with Hoerz came to an end as a result of "differing perspectives regarding the nature of their collaboration".

The company would not be drawn further on the reason behind Hoerz's departure.

Management will now be taken over by Raphael Rauer, managing director of marketing and sales, and Jens Hoffmann, managing director of technology.

While Rauer will take the lead on "administration and finance functions", Hoffmann will manage IT, HR, communications and legal issues. Rauer will also take over as the executive board's spokesperson.

Hoerz's departure comes at a time when the company has witnessed challenges in its local beer market.

In September, the Weissenburg pilsner owner announced plans to shut a local production site by the end of the year in Thannhausen, in the south-east state of Bavaria, Germany.

At the time, the group said the move was “unavoidable” due to “existing overcapacity”.

Haus Cramer's Hoffmann added: “The German beer market is in a very challenging and serious situation, which is characterised, among other things, by the ongoing inflation and the significant decline in consumption among consumers in the beer segment.”

Such an environment, he said, had brought on a “resulting increasing economic pressure on breweries”, meaning “the economic conditions have become even tougher in recent years and especially in the last few months".

He added: “In order to be future-oriented and therefore profitable in the long run, we have to align our company in every respect with the medium- to long-term framework conditions and customer requirements.”

Following the closure, Haus Cramer will stop producing the Münz and Postbräu beer brands and Thannhäuser mineral waters, which were made at the Thannhausen site and sold locally in the Bavaria region.

While the Warstein-headquartered Haus Cramer is best known for its beer portfolio, which includes the Warsteiner pilsner, it has also expanded into other drinks categories in recent years.

In February, the Herforder brewer entered soft drinks with its Paderborner Limo Cola-Orange-Mix.

Later that month, it launched into bottled water in the on-premise with the El Puro mineral-water brand.

The move, the group said at the time, was part of its portfolio diversification strategy. It described packaged water as an “important volume segment in the gastronomy industry”.