Heineken N.V. () is a Dutch multinational

brewing company A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of bee ...

, founded in 1864 by

Gerard Adriaan Heineken Heineken Lager Beer ( nl, Heineken Pilsener), or simply Heineken () is a pale lager beer with 5% alcohol by volume produced by the Dutch brewing company Heineken N.V. Heineken beer is sold in a green bottle with a red star. History On 15 Febr ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

. , Heineken owns over 165

breweries A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of bee ...

in more than 70 countries. It produces 348 international, regional, local and speciality beers and ciders and employs approximately 85,000 people. With an annual beer production of 241300000 hectolitres in 2019, and global revenues of 23.894 billion euro in 2019, Heineken N.V. is the number one brewer in Europe and one of the largest brewers by volume in the world. Heineken's Dutch breweries are located in

Zoeterwoude Zoeterwoude () is a municipality in the province of South Holland, Western Netherlands. It covers of which is water. It had a population of in . Located to the southeast of Leiden and north of Zoetermeer, the municipality of Zoeterwoude consist ...

's-Hertogenbosch s-Hertogenbosch (), colloquially known as Den Bosch (), is a city and municipality in the Netherlands with a population of 157,486. It is the capital of the province of North Brabant and its fourth largest by population. The city is south of th ...

and

Wijlre Wijlre ( or ; li, Wielder) is a village in the Dutch province of Limburg. It is located in the municipality of Gulpen-Wittem. History The village was first mentioned in 1075 as Wilere, and means "farm or hamlet". Wijlre developed in the Middle ...

. The original brewery in Amsterdam, closed in 1988, is preserved as a museum called

Heineken Experience The Heineken Experience, located in Amsterdam, is a historic brewery and corporate visitor center for the internationally distributed Dutch pilsner, Heineken beer. History Background The industrial facility was built as the first Heineken ...

. Since the merger between the two largest brewing empires in the world,

Anheuser-Busch InBev Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV, commonly known as AB InBev, is an American-Belgian multinational drink and brewing company based in Leuven, Belgium. AB InBev has a global functional management office in New York City, and regional headquarters ...

and

SABMiller SABMiller plc was a South African multinational brewing and beverage company headquartered in Woking, England on the outskirts of London until 10 October 2016 when it was acquired by Anheuser-Busch InBev. Prior to that date, it was the world's ...

, in October 2016, Heineken has been the second-largest brewer in the world.

History

Gerard Adriaan Heineken

The Heineken company was founded in 1864 when the 22-year-old

bought a brewery known as De Hooiberg (the haystack) in

. In 1869 Heineken switched to the use of bottom-fermenting yeast. In 1873 the brewery's name changed to Heineken's Bierbrouwerij Maatschappij (HBM), and opened a second brewery in

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

in 1874. In 1886 Dr. H. Elion, a pupil of the French

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe th ...

Louis Pasteur Louis Pasteur (, ; 27 December 1822 – 28 September 1895) was a French chemist and microbiologist renowned for his discoveries of the principles of vaccination, microbial fermentation and pasteurization, the latter of which was named afte ...

, developed the "Heineken A-yeast" in the Heineken laboratory. This

yeast Yeasts are eukaryotic, single-celled microorganisms classified as members of the fungus kingdom. The first yeast originated hundreds of millions of years ago, and at least 1,500 species are currently recognized. They are estimated to constitut ...

is still the key ingredient of Heineken beer.

Henry Pierre Heineken

The founder's son, , managed the company from 1917 to 1940, and continued involvement with the company until 1951. During his tenure, Heineken developed techniques to maintain consistent beer quality during large-scale production. After

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the company focused more and more on exports. Three days after

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...

ended in the United States, the first Heineken shipment landed in New York. From that day on, Heineken has remained one of the most successful imported beer brands in the United States.

Alfred Henry Heineken

Henry Pierre's son, Alfred Henry "Freddy" Heineken, started working at the company in 1940, and in 1971 was appointed Chairman of the Executive Board. He was a powerful force behind Heineken's continued global expansion, and while he retired from the Executive Board in 1989, he maintained involvement with the company until his death in 2002. During this period, Heineken tried to increase its stock price by purchasing competing breweries and closing them down. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, many small breweries were bought or closed. In 1968 Heineken merged with its biggest competitor,

Amstel The Amstel () is a river in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. It flows from the Aarkanaal and Drecht in Nieuwveen northwards, passing Uithoorn, Amstelveen, and Ouderkerk aan de Amstel, to the IJ in Amsterdam. Annually, the riv ...

, and in 1975 opened a new brewery in

. The Amstel brewery was closed in 1980, and its production moved to Zoeterwoude and

Den Bosch s-Hertogenbosch (), colloquially known as Den Bosch (), is a city and municipality in the Netherlands with a population of 157,486. It is the capital of the province of North Brabant and its fourth largest by population. The city is south of th ...

Present

With the part acquisition of

Scottish and Newcastle Scottish & Newcastle plc was a brewing company headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland, which expanded from its home base to become an international business with beer volumes growing almost tenfold. The company was listed on the London Stock Exc ...

in 2007/2008 Heineken became the third-largest brewer based on revenues, behind the Belgian-Brazilian

AB InBev Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV, commonly known as AB InBev, is an American-Belgian multinational drink and brewing company based in Leuven, Belgium. AB InBev has a global functional management office in New York City, and regional headquarters ...

and the British-South African SAB. Since the merger between

and

in October 2016, Heineken has been the second largest brewer in the world. On 12 January 2010, Heineken International successfully bought the brewery division of Mexican giant

FEMSA Fomento Económico Mexicano, S.A.B. de C.V., doing business as FEMSA, is a Mexican multinational beverage and retail company headquartered in Monterrey, Mexico. It operates the largest independent Coca-Cola bottling group in the world and the la ...

, and also merged with the company, expanding its reach throughout Latin America. The company will sell its products there through FEMSA, which is the largest bottler and brewery in all of Latin America, and maker of such brands as Dos Equis XX,

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

and Sol.

now owns 20% of Heineken N.V. after the early 2010 all-stock deal, becoming its largest single shareholder after the Dutch families (Heineken family and Hoyer family) who owns 25.83% and public shareholders owning 54.17%. The FEMSA acquisition is expected to keep Heineken in its strong position by growing its market share in the Latin American markets. FEMSA has a massive distribution network and owns Mexico's largest convenience store chain

OXXO Oxxo (stylized as OXXO) is a Mexican chain of convenience stores, with over 21,000 stores across Latin America. It is the largest chain of convenience stores in Latin America. Its headquarters are in Monterrey, Nuevo León. It is wholly owned by ...

, which has thousands of locations throughout the country. In September 2014, it was announced that Heineken would sell its Mexican packaging business Empaque to Crown for around $1.23 billion. Also during that month, Heineken revealed it was in talks to sell its Czech operations to

Molson Coors The Molson Coors Beverage Company is an American-Canadian multinational drink and brewing company incorporated under Delaware General Corporation Law and headquartered in Golden, Colorado and Montreal, Quebec. Molson Coors was formed in 2005 ...

. On 10 September 2015, Heineken International announced it would acquire a 50% stake in

Lagunitas Brewing Company The Lagunitas Brewing Company, founded in 1993 in Lagunitas, California, is a subsidiary of Heineken International. Before Heineken bought a 50% share of the company in 2015, the company met the definition of a craft brewery. Two years prior it ...

of Petaluma, California as part of an effort to allow Lagunitas to expand its operations globally. As part of the deal Lagunitas will no longer be considered a craft brewer as the Heineken stake is greater than 25%. In January 2017, Heineken announced it was in negotiations to buy the

Kirin Company is a Japanese integrated beverages company. It is a subsidiary of Kirin Holdings Company, Limited. Its major operating units include Kirin Brewery Company, Limited, Mercian Corporation and Kirin Beverages Company, Limited. Kirin is a member o ...

's 12 breweries in Brazil. The following month, Heineken closed the deal and bought Brasil Kirin for US$700 million. After previously acquiring 50% of Lagunitas Brewing Company, Heineken announced, on 4 May 2017, it would be purchasing the remaining 50%—making it the sole owner of Lagunitas. In June 2018, Heineken named Maggie Timoney as the CEO of Heineken USA, making her the first woman to become the CEO of a major United States beer supplier. In 2018,

Heineken Heineken Lager Beer ( nl, Heineken Pilsener), or simply Heineken () is a pale lager beer with 5% alcohol by volume produced by the Dutch brewing company Heineken N.V. Heineken beer is sold in a green bottle with a red star. History On 15 Febr ...

signed an agreement with China Resources Enterprises to purchase a 40% stake into the company.

Global structure

Heineken organises the company into five territories which are then divided into regional operations. The regions are: Western Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, The Americas, Africa and the Middle East, and Asia Pacific. These territories contain 115 brewing plants in more than 65 countries, brewing local brands in addition to the Heineken brand.

Executive team

The executive team of the company consists of the following people: * Dolf van den Brink, Chairman Executive Board/CEO * Harold van der Broek, Member Executive Board/CFO * Marc Busain, President Americas * Jacco van der Linden, President Asia Pacific * Chris Van Steenbergen, Chief Human Resources Officer * Marc Gross, Chief Supply Chain Officer * Jan Derck van Karnebeek, Chief Commercial Officer * Roland Pirmez, President Africa, Middle East and Eastern Europe * Blanca Juti, Chief Corporate Relations Officer * Soren Hagh, President Europe

Brewing plants

Heineken's brewing plants have been designed and engineered in 4 main parts of the world.

Africa and the Middle East

Heineken has 17 operating companies in Africa and the Middle East. These include: * Brasseries du Maroc, Morocco *

Al Ahram Beverages Company Heineken N.V. is a Dutch brewer which owns a worldwide portfolio of over 170 beer brands, mainly pale lager, though some other beer styles are produced. The two largest brands are Heineken and Tecate; though the portfolio includes Amstel, Fos ...

, Egypt *

Amstel Brewery Amstel Brewery ( nl, Amstelbrouwerij, ) is a Dutch brewery founded in 1870 on the Mauritskade in Amsterdam. It was taken over by Heineken International in 1968, and the brewing plant closed down in 1982, with production moving to the main H ...

, Jordan *

Harar Brewery Harar Brewery is a brewery with its headquarters in Harar, Ethiopia. Products Harar Brewery produces Harar Beer, a 5 % abv pale lager, as well as ''Hakim Stout'', a 5.8% abv stout.U.S. Embassy article identifies Harar Beer as a pilsner. The brewe ...

, Ethiopia *

Bralirwa Bralirwa, also known by its French name Brasseries et Limonaderies du Rwanda, is the largest brewer and soft beverage company in Rwanda. Its shares of stock are listed on the Rwanda Stock Exchange, where they trade under the symbol:BLRW. As of D ...

, Rwanda * Brarudi, Burundi * Brasserie Almaza, Lebanon * Brasseries de Bourbon, Réunion *

Bralima Brasseries, Limonaderies et Malteries SARL (Bralima), established in 1923 as the Brasserie de Léopoldville, is a brewing company in the Democratic Republic of the Congo which operates six breweries. It has been owned by Heineken International ...

, Democratic Republic of the Congo * Consolidated Breweries, Nigeria * Groupe Castel Algérie, Algeria *

Nigerian Breweries Nigerian Breweries Plc, is the largest brewing company in Nigeria. It serves the Nigerian market and West Africa. History Early years The idea to establish a brewery in Lagos was first promoted by Frank Samuel of UAC prior to World War II. Bu ...

, Nigeria * Société nouvelles des Brasseries SONOBRA, Tunisia * Sierra Leone Brewery Limited, Sierra Leone * Sedibeng Brewery, South Africa * Tango Brewery, Algeria

Asia Pacific

COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Luchtfoto van de brouwerij van Heineken's Nederlandsch-Indische Bierbrouwerij Maatschappij in Soerabaja TMnr 10015513

Breweries in

Asia Pacific Asia-Pacific (APAC) is the part of the world near the western Pacific Ocean. The Asia-Pacific region varies in area depending on context, but it generally includes East Asia, Russian Far East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and Pacific Is ...

: * Cambodia Brewery Ltd (CBL) in Cambodia * Shanghai Asia Pacific Brewery in China * Hainan Asia Pacific Brewery Company Ltd in China * Guangzhou Asia Pacific Brewery in China (under construction) * Multi Bintang Indonesia in Indonesia *

Lao Asia Pacific Brewery Heineken Lao Brewery (HLB), previously known as Lao Asia Pacific Breweries, is a producer of beer in Laos and is based in Vientiane. It is the second brewer to be granted a beer investment license by the Government of Laos. The company was known ...

in Laos * Sungai Way Brewery in Malaysia *

DB Breweries DB Breweries is a New Zealand-based brewing company, owned by Heineken Asia Pacific. Founded in 1930 by Sir Henry Kelliher and W Joseph Coutts, the partners purchased Levers and Co. and the Waitemata Brewery Co. in Otahuhu. Asia Pacific Breweri ...

in New Zealand * South Pacific Brewery Ltd (SPB) in Papua New Guinea *

Asia Pacific Breweries Heineken Asia Pacific, formerly Asia Pacific Breweries (APB) is a Singaporean brewery company. Founded in 1931 as a joint venture between Heineken International and Fraser and Neave, it was renamed Asia Pacific Breweries (APB) in 1989 and given i ...

in Singapore * Asia Pacific Brewery Lanka Limited (APB Lanka) in Sri Lanka * Thai Asia Pacific Brewery in Thailand * Heineken Vietnam Brewery Co Ltd in Vietnam * Heineken Hanoi Brewery Co Ltd in Vietnam * United Breweries Ltd Bangalore in India

Europe

Breweries in Europe: * Brau Union Österreich in Austria * Syabar Brewing Company in Belarus *

Alken-Maes Alken-Maes is a Belgian brewery created out of the 1988 merger of two small breweries, Maes located at Kontich-Waarloos and Cristal-Alken located at Alken. It was bought by Scottish & Newcastle in 2000, who were taken over by Carlsberg and H ...

in Belgium *

Zagorka Brewery Heineken N.V. is a Dutch brewer which owns a worldwide portfolio of over 170 beer brands, mainly pale lager, though some other beer styles are produced. The two largest brands are Heineken and Tecate; though the portfolio includes Amstel, Fos ...

in Bulgaria * Karlovačka pivovara in Croatia * Starobrno in the Czech Republic * Federation Breweries in

Gateshead Gateshead () is a large town in northern England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank, opposite Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle to which it is joined by seven bridges. The town contains the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Millennium Bridge, Sage ...

, England (closed 2010) *

H. P. Bulmer H.P. Bulmer is a cider-making company founded in 1887 in Hereford, England. The company's two principal brands are its own Bulmers cider, which is sold worldwide, and Strongbow, which is sold across Europe, the US & Canada, Oceania and Ea ...

Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. With a population ...

in England *

John Smith's John Smith's Brewery in Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, England, produces beers including John Smith's, the highest selling bitter in the United Kingdom since the mid-1990s. The majority of John Smith's sales are of the nitrogenated Extra Smooth ...

Tadcaster Tadcaster is a market town and civil parish in the Selby district of North Yorkshire, England, east of the Great North Road, north-east of Leeds, and south-west of York. Its historical importance from Roman times onward was largely as the ...

, England * Royal Brewery in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, England * Heineken France: ** Brasserie de l'Espérance in

Schiltigheim Schiltigheim (, , and sometimes by non-local speakers of French; Alsatian: ''Schelige'' ; ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. The inhabitants are called ''Schilikois'' in French and ''Scheligemer'' ...

** Brasserie Pelforth in Mons-en-Baroeul ** Brasserie de la Valentine in

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

Brasserie Fischer In France, Flanders, and the Francophonie, Francophone world, a brasserie () is a type of French restaurant with a relaxed setting, which serves single dishes and other meals. The word ''brasserie'' is also French language, French for "brewery ...

(closed 2009) ** Brasserie Adelshoffen in

(closed 2000) ** Brasserie Mutzig in

Mutzig Mutzig ( or ; german: Mützig) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est, in north-eastern France. The commune of Mutzig is located at the entrance of the Bruche river valley, on the Route des Vins d'Alsace. History Evidences of h ...

(closed 1989) * Athenian Brewery in Greece * Heineken Hungária in Hungary * Heineken Ireland at Lady's Well Brewery in

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

* Heineken Italia in Italy * Heineken Nederland in the Netherlands *

Żywiec Brewery Żywiec Brewery (pronounced ; ) is one of the largest breweries and beer producers in Poland. Founded in 1856 in the town of Żywiec, the brewery manufactures pale lager with a 5.6% alcohol volume. Grupa Żywiec S.A. consists of five main breweri ...

in Poland *

Central de Cervejas Sociedade Central de Cervejas (SCC; full name: SCC – Sociedade Central de Cervejas e Bebidas, S.A.) is a Portuguese brewery, founded in 1934. Its main output is the Sagres brand of beers. The company has been controlled by Heineken since Ap ...

in Portugal * Heineken Romania in Romania * Heineken Brewery LLC in Russia *

Heineken Srbija Heineken Srbija ( sr, / ) is a Serbian brewery based in Zaječar. It is owned by the Dutch brewing company Heineken International. History The Dutch brewing company Heineken International entered the Serbian market in July 2007. Soon after ente ...

in Serbia *

Caledonian Brewery Caledonian Brewery was a Scottish brewery founded in 1869 in the Shandon area of Edinburgh, Scotland. History Early years When it was founded in 1869, the brewery was named the Lorimer and Clark Caledonian Brewery, after its founders George L ...

, Edinburgh, Scotland * Heineken Slovensko in Slovakia * Heineken España in Spain, with breweries in Seville, Valencia, Jaén and Madrid * Heineken Switzerland in Switzerland * Calanda Bräu in Switzerland * Pivovarna Laško Union in Slovenia

The Americas

Breweries in the Americas: * Brasserie Nationale d'Haiti in Haiti * Commonwealth Brewery in the Bahamas * Cervejarias Kaiser in Brazil * Cervecería Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma in Mexico * Cervecerías Barú-Panama, S.A. in Panama * Desnoes & Geddes in Jamaica *

in the United States * Windward & Leeward Brewery in Saint Lucia * Surinaamse Brouwerij in Suriname On 20 January 2017, Heineken NV and Kirin Holdings confirmed they were in negotiations for Heineken to acquire Kirin's beer operations in Brazil. Kirin had earlier bought assets in Brazil in 2011 with the local brewer

Schincariol Brasil Kirin was a Brazilian brewery and drink company, the second largest in the country after AmBev. Founded in 1939 as Schincariol, the company was purchased in 2011 by the Kirin Company. In 2017, Kirin sold the company to Heineken N.V. of the ...

, which makes

Nova Schin Brasil Kirin was a Brazilian brewery and drink company, the second largest in the country after AmBev. Founded in 1939 as Schincariol, the company was purchased in 2011 by the Kirin Company. In 2017, Kirin sold the company to Heineken N.V. of t ...

and

Baden Baden Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Colu ...

Beer brands

Heineken International owns a worldwide portfolio of over 170 beer brands, mainly

pale lager Pale lager is a very pale-to-golden-colored lager beer with a well- attenuated body and a varying degree of noble hop bitterness. The brewing process for this beer developed in the mid-19th century, when Gabriel Sedlmayr took pale ale brewing ...

, though some other

beer style Beer styles differentiate and categorise beers by colour, flavour, strength, ingredients, production method, recipe, history, or origin. The modern concept of beer styles is largely based on the work of writer Michael Jackson in his 1977 book ...

s are produced. The two largest brands are

and

; though the portfolio includes

Cruzcampo Heineken N.V. is a Dutch brewer which owns a worldwide portfolio of over 170 beer brands, mainly pale lager, though some other beer styles are produced. The two largest brands are Heineken and Tecate; though the portfolio includes Amstel, Fo ...

Affligem Affligem (; anciently written Afflighem) is a municipality located some west-north-west of Brussels in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant, not far from the city of Aalst and the important railway junction of Denderleeuw. Affligem is situa ...

Żywiec Żywiec () (german: Saybusch) is a town in southern Poland with 31,194 inhabitants (2019). Between 1975 and 1998, it was located within the Bielsko-Biała Voivodeship, but has since become part of the Silesian Voivodeship.It is the capital of Ż ...

, Starobrno,

Tiger Beer Tiger Beer is a Singaporean brand of beer first launched in 1932. It is currently produced by Heineken Asia Pacific, formerly known as Asia Pacific Breweries. The company is a joint-venture between Heineken N.V. and Singaporean multinational ...

Zagorka Zagorka is a Bulgarian beer brand from the city of Stara Zagora. It is brewed at the Zagorka Brewery. The company was founded in 1902, in the Czech tradition, by a doctor who returned from Prague. The current brewery was opened in 1958 and sinc ...

Red Stripe Red Stripe is a 4.7% ABV pale lager brewed by Desnoes & Geddes in Jamaica. It was first introduced in 1928 from a recipe developed by Paul H. Geddes and Bill Martindale. It is also brewed in the Netherlands by Heineken. In 1993, Guinness Brewing ...

, and

Birra Moretti Birra Moretti () was an Italian brewing company, founded in Udine in 1859 by Luigi Moretti. In 1996 the company was acquired by Heineken N.V. The brewing plant in Udine was sold to the newly formed Birra Castello S.p.A.; Moretti is now a bran ...

. Heineken has added a cider blend named

Jillz Jillz, (''formerly known as Charli'') is a mix of cider, barley and water with a fruity flavor. The drink is called a “Sparkling Cider Blend” and contains 5 percent alcohol. Jillz is brewed by Heineken, a Dutch brewing company, and is available ...

to their list of brands. Since mid-2007, Heineken has also taken ownership of former S&N International brands such as Strongbow and Bulmers Ciders and John Smith's and

Newcastle Brown Ale Newcastle Brown Ale is a brown ale, originally brewed in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Launched in 1927 by Colonel Jim Porter after three years of development, the 1960 merger of Newcastle Breweries with Scottish Brewers afforded the beer natio ...

. Heinekin owns the Czech brand Dačický, which was brewed in

Kutná Hora Kutná Hora (; medieval Czech: ''Hory Kutné''; german: Kuttenberg) is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 20,000 inhabitants. The centre of Kutná Hora, including the Sedlec Abbey and its ossuary, was designa ...

from 1573 until Heineken took ownership of it, and closed the brewery. In 2010, Heineken bought Mexican brewery FEMSA Cerveza, including brands Tecate, Sol, Dos Equis, Indio and Kloster.

Ownership

The shares of Heineken International are traded on the NYSE Euronext Amsterdam and

OTCQX OTC Markets Group (previously known as Pink Sheets) is an American financial market providing price and liquidity information for almost 10,000 Over-the-counter (finance), over-the-counter (OTC) securities. The group has its headquarters in Ne ...

under the symbols: HEIA and HEINY respectively. As at 31 December 2013, the shareholding in the group's stock was as depicted in the table below: # Heineken Holding N.V is a public company listed on the NYSE Euronext Amsterdam. Its single investment is Heineken International. It is majority owned by L’Arche Green N.V an investment vehicle of the Heineken family and the Hoyer family. # Fomento Económico Mexicano, S.A.B. de C.V (FEMSA) holds an additional 14.935% in Heineken Holding N.V bringing the total direct and indirect shareholding in Heineken International to 20%.

Marketing

Advertising

Heineken's main advertising slogan in the UK was "Refreshes the parts other beers cannot reach", some of which featured voice-over narration by Danish comedian/pianist

Victor Borge Børge Rosenbaum (3 January 1909 – 23 December 2000), known professionally as Victor Borge ( ), was a Danish-American comedian, conductor, and pianist who achieved great popularity in radio and television in the North America and Europe. His ...

. The British TV campaign ran for over 30 years – stopping in 2005. From March 2011 they have been advertising using the song 'The Golden Age' by

The Asteroids Galaxy Tour The Asteroids Galaxy Tour is a Danish pop band consisting of vocalist Mette Lindberg and songwriter/producer Lars Iversen, formed in 2007. When performing live the band extends to a five-piece, featuring Mikkel Balster Dørig (guitar), Simon Lit ...

. After the success of The Entrance, a web advert (4M views in YouTube), Heineken launched The Date in May 2011. In March 2017 in Amsterdam, Heineken opened a pop-up bakery for five days to promote the yeast used in its brewing. The bread was made by Mark Plaating and proceeds were donated to a local baking guild.

Sponsorships

Heineken sponsors several sporting events. The

Heineken Cup The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Heineken Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a pre ...

was an annual

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

knock-out A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking ...

competition involving leading club, regional and provincial teams from the Six Nations:

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. Heineken was the title sponsor from the cup's

inaugural In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inaugur ...

tournament in 1995–96, until the tournament ceased in 2014 and was replaced by the Champions Cup. Heineken continued its sponsorship of European Club Rugby as the principle partner of the European Rugby Champions Cup returning to title sponsorship of the Champions Cup from 2018–19. They have been credited as the ''Founding Partner of European Rugby''. Heineken can 2011 UEFA Champions League Final

Heineken can 2011 UEFA Champions League Final

Heineken has been an integral partner of the

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...

since 2005, with a theme of "Enjoyed together around the world." The

Heineken Open (tennis) The ATP Auckland Open, commonly known by its sponsored name ASB Classic, is a professional men's tennis tournament in Auckland, New Zealand. The tournament is played annually at the ASB Tennis Centre, in Parnell. It is part of the ATP World ...

is a

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

tournament A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

on the ATP International Series played in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

, New Zealand. Heineken also sponsors the music events: the

Heineken Open'er Festival The Open'er Festival is a music festival which takes place on the north coast of Poland, in Gdynia. It is one of the biggest annual music festivals in Poland. The first edition of the festival was organized in Warsaw in 2002 as ''Open Air Fest ...

, a contemporary music festival held in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

; and, since 2004, the

Oxegen Oxegen was a music festival in Ireland, first held from 2004–2011 as a rock and pop festival and again in 2013 with dance and chart acts only. The event was regularly cited as Ireland's biggest music festival, and, by 2009, it was being ci ...

music festival in Ireland. Heineken sponsors the Ballyheigue Summerfest in

County Kerry County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...

, Ireland. In 2016, Heineken became the Official Beer of the

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

World Championship after the

Canadian Grand Prix The Canadian Grand Prix (french: Grand Prix du Canada) is an annual motor racing event held since 1961. It has been part of the Formula One World Championship since 1967. It was first staged at Mosport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario, as a sports ...

. During the

knockout stage A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

of the 2019–20 season, Heineken 0,0% became the official beer of the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...

as the season resumed followed with the start of the

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen b ...

season.

Holland Heineken House

Since 1992 Heineken organises, together with

NOC*NSF The Dutch Olympic Committee*Dutch Sports Federation, ( nl, Nederlands Olympisch Comité*Nederlandse Sport Federatie) generally abbreviated NOC*NSF, is the overall coordinating Dutch sports organization that also functions as the Dutch National Ol ...

, the Dutch meeting place at all the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

, called the Holland Heineken House.

Heineken Experience

The

is a museum about

Heineken Pilsener Heineken Lager Beer ( nl, Heineken Pilsener), or simply Heineken () is a pale lager beer with 5% alcohol by volume produced by the Dutch brewing company Heineken N.V. Heineken beer is sold in a green bottle with a red star. History On 15 Febr ...

and the Heineken brewery, based in the original brewery in

. The original building was built in 1867, and was in use as a brewery until 1988. In 1991, when part of the establishment was torn down, the Heineken Reception and Information Centre ( nl, Heineken ontvangst- en informatiecentrum) was opened in the remaining building. In 2001 the name was changed to Heineken Experience. The museum features "rides", interactive exhibits, and two bars. It also gives an insight into the company's history and brewing processes through the years. Visitors receive one small tasting glass and two full-sized glasses of Heineken beer to drink at the end of the tour, both paid for by the 21 euro entry fee.

Controversies

Price fixing

On 18 April 2007 the

European commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...

fined Heineken €219.3m,

Grolsch Grolsch Brewery (Koninklijke Grolsch N.V. - "Royal Grolsch"), known simply as Grolsch (), is a Dutch brewery founded in 1615 by Willem Neerfeldt in Groenlo. In 1895 the de Groen family bought the brewery. They had started their own brewery in E ...

€31.65m and

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

€22.85m for operating a price fixing cartel in the Netherlands, totalling €273.7m.

InBev InBev () is a brewing company that resulted from the merger between Belgium-based company Interbrew and Brazilian brewer AmBev which took place in 2004. It existed independently until the acquisition of Anheuser-Busch in 2008, which formed Anheu ...

, (formerly

Interbrew Interbrew is subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV is based in Breda, Netherlands. It has one subsidiary, Ambev S.A. of São Paulo, Brazil. Brands Interbrew brands have historically included Budweiser, Stella Artois, Boddingtons, Beck's, Star ...

), escaped without a penalty because it provided "decisive information" about the cartel which operated between 1996 and 1999 and others in the EU market. The brewers controlled 95% of the Dutch market, with Heineken claiming a half and the three others 15% each.

Neelie Kroes Neelie Kroes (; born 19 July 1941) is a retired Dutch politician of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and businessperson who served as European Commissioner from 22 November 2004 to 1 November 2014. Kroes studied Economics at t ...

said she was "very disappointed" that the collusion took place at the very highest (boardroom) level. She added, Heineken, Grolsch, Bavaria and InBev tried to cover their tracks by using code names and abbreviations for secret meetings to carve up the market for beer sold to supermarkets, hotels, restaurants and cafes. The price fixing extended to cheaper Store brand, own-brand labels and Rebate (marketing), rebates for bars. In 2004 Heineken and Kronenbourg (then part of

), the two dominant brewers in France, were fined €2.5m – with the penalty reduced for co-operating.

Fake craft beers

, Heineken briefly marketed "Blasket Blonde" in

from March 2015 to September 2016, and ''Beanntraí Bru'' in parts of County Cork in August 2016, as locally-made craft beers, from invented breweries.

Possible ties to the slave trade

On 15 February 1864, Gerard Adriaan Heineken bought De Hooiberg (the Haystack) brewery in Amsterdam. It remains unclear whether the funds for the purchase of the Haystack came from his father, a cheese trader, or his mother, whose estate included proceeds from her previous husband’s family’s historical investments in West Indies slave plantations. In a letter to his mother 18 June 1863, Gerard discussed the potential Haystack purchase and his plans for the future. Gerard’s mother, Anna Geertruida van de Paauw, came to own shares in slave plantations in Berbice (modern day Guyana) and Suriname through her first marriage in 1829 to Pieter Jacob Schumacher van Oudorp (1804–1833) who died in 1833. The Schumacher family owned several plantations in Berbice and Suriname, according to records held at the UK’s National Archive. After Pieter Schumacher died, Anna was remarried to Cornelis Heineken and had four children, one of which was Gerard Heineken. Anna died in 1881.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Heineken, Breweries in the Netherlands Multinational companies headquartered in the Netherlands Companies established in 1864 Price fixing convictions Multinational breweries 1864 establishments in the Netherlands Dutch brands Companies listed on Euronext Amsterdam Manufacturing companies established in 1864