Heineken to cut up to 6,000 jobs amid market slump

Struggling Dutch brewer Heineken announced on Wednesday that it plans to cut between 5,000 and 6,000 jobs over the next two years as it confronts what it described as “challenging market conditions,” with beer volumes declining compared to the previous year.

The company said it would accelerate productivity measures at scale to generate significant cost savings, resulting in the reduction of thousands of roles. Heineken currently employs around 87,000 people worldwide, News.Az reports, citing AFP.

Chief executive Dolf van den Brink said the brewer remains cautious about short-term prospects for the global beer market. Last month, van den Brink surprised the company by announcing he would step down after nearly six years in the role. He told reporters he was leaving with “mixed emotions,” noting that he had led the firm through turbulent economic and political periods.

“My priority for the coming months is to leave Heineken in the strongest possible position,” he said.

In October, the brewer had already revealed plans to cut or reassign 400 positions as part of a reorganisation of its Amsterdam headquarters aimed at leveraging new technologies.

While executives did not specify where most of the upcoming job reductions would occur, chief financial officer Harold van den Broek suggested Europe would likely be heavily affected. He noted that Europe represents a significant portion of Heineken’s business but has proven difficult in terms of improving operating leverage. The company is therefore focusing many initiatives on strengthening its European operations, though not exclusively.

Heineken, the world’s second-largest brewer after AB InBev, reported a 2.4 percent decline in global beer volumes in 2025. The drop was particularly sharp in Europe and the Americas, where volumes fell by 4.1 percent and 3.5 percent respectively. In the fourth quarter alone, global beer volumes were down 2.8 percent.

Annual sales totalled 34.4 billion euros ($41 billion), down from 36.0 billion euros in 2024. Net profit reached 2.7 billion euros, representing a 4.9 percent increase year-on-year when currency fluctuations were excluded.

Looking ahead to 2026, Heineken forecast organic operating profit growth of between two and six percent for the full year, following a 4.4 percent rise in 2025 to 4.4 billion euros.

News.Az 

By Nijat Babayev