E-Malt.com News article: Brazil: Heineken targets Brazil’s premium beer segment with low-calorie label

Heineken has intensified competition for consumers in Brazil’s premium beer segment—currently the industry’s most coveted category—with the launch of a new product line, Heineken Ultimate. The group selected Brazil for the debut of the new label, which contains 97 calories—30% fewer than the regular version—is gluten-free, and has 3.5% alcohol content, Valor International reported on May 19.

The launch comes amid an escalating battle in the premium segment with its main rival, Ambev. Since the third quarter of last year, Ambev has claimed to have regained leadership in Brazil’s premium beer segment after a decade. Heineken, however, disputes that leadership and points to what it describes as a price war, especially involving the Original label.

“This is a historic moment for the group in Brazil and involves the brand that brought us to where we are today. We are bringing major innovation to continue leading the development of this category in the country,” Maurício Giamellaro, CEO of Heineken in Brazil, told Valor.

According to Giamellaro, Brazil was chosen for the product’s debut because of the strength of the local market. The country is currently the largest market by volume for both the Heineken and Amstel brands. Heineken entered Brazil in May 2010 after acquiring the beer division of Mexico’s FEMSA group. In 2017, it acquired Brasil Kirin, consolidating its position as the country’s second-largest brewer.

The Brazilian launch marks the second global step for the Heineken Ultimate line, which serves as the umbrella for the brand’s functional products worldwide. The first move came in March, when the group launched Heineken 0.0 Ultimate in the United States, a zero-alcohol, zero-calorie, zero-sugar variety. Asked about a Brazilian launch for that version, Giamellaro said it is not currently part of the company’s plans.

The premium segment now represents around 25% of total beer volume in Brazil. Giamellaro said that when the group began expanding in the country in 2010, that figure was closer to 4%.

The new label is part of what Heineken calls its “balanced choices” segment. According to the company’s estimates, that category represents roughly 10% of the premium beer market in Brazil. A significant portion of the portfolio is concentrated in nonalcoholic products.

Cecília Bottai, Heineken Brazil’s vice president of marketing, said the company aims to make Heineken Ultimate part of more consumption occasions. “People are taking greater care of both their physical and mental health. They pay attention to the calorie content of the products they consume,” she said, describing the context behind the launch. Suggested retail prices are R$6.49 for the can version and R$7.29 for the long-neck bottle, above the typical version.

According to Bottai, the product was developed with Brazilian consumers especially in mind, though the plan is to expand it into other markets in the near future.

Competitors such as Ambev also offer products aimed at the same segment, including Stella Artois Pure Gold, which contains 17% fewer calories and is also gluten-free. More recently, Ambev launched Skol Zero Zero, which has zero alcohol, zero sugar, and is gluten-free as well.

Initially, Heineken Ultimate will be produced at the company’s brewery in Jacareí (São Paulo). By the end of July, the group aims to distribute the new version across all states in Brazil’s Southeast region. In the future, the company also plans to produce the label at its brewery in Passos (Minas Gerais).

The goal is to distribute the Ultimate line nationwide by March next year. Unlike the nonalcoholic version, the new product does not require production-plant adjustments before manufacturing begins.

The launch is also part of the group’s portfolio diversification strategy, which already includes brands such as Amstel Ultra, Sol, Praya Lager—both gluten-free—as well as Baer Mate, Mamba Water, and Mamba Water Protein.

Competition between Heineken and Ambev has intensified in recent years, especially in the premium segment, a category that continues to grow while mainstream labels steadily lose volume—particularly amid a challenging economic environment and pressure on consumer budgets.

The two companies are also engaged in a dispute before Brazil’s antitrust authority, the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE), with Heineken accusing its rival of abusing market power through exclusivity agreements with bars. Ambev says it strictly complies with its agreement with the antitrust watchdog. The regulator has not yet issued a decision on Heineken’s complaints.

In the first quarter of this year, Heineken reported a decline in beer volume in Brazil of between 1% and 3%. By contrast, Ambev posted record volume for the period.

The Heineken brand itself posted a slight decline in volume during the quarter in Brazil. According to Giamellaro, however, the quarter was positive when including sales of the zero-alcohol version. He also noted that Carnival tends to favor more mainstream brands.


19 May, 2026