Heineken will stop brewing Březňák beer in Velké Březno near Ústí nad Labem and move production to other plants of the group.
The brewery in Velké Březno near Ústí nad Labem will stop brewing beer, and Heineken will move production of the Březňák brand to its other plants. According to Ústecký deník, to which Heineken's external relations director Robert Kičina confirmed it, the change will affect about 20 employees. The news was published on 26 October 2026.[1][2]
Březňák will continue to be made, at other breweries of the group. According to Kičina, the company wants to keep the original recipe, ingredients and key elements of the traditional process. He explained the change as a gradual adjustment of the scale of production in response to falling beer consumption and rising energy costs. According to him, the company is looking for other job opportunities within the firm for the affected employees.[1][2]
Earlier announcement
At the end of March 2026 Heineken denied that it was closing the brewery. It announced only a partial reduction in production volume without layoffs; a company spokeswoman said that about 25 people worked at the brewery.[1][2]
The site and the brewery
The distribution and logistics centre that Heineken opened in 2017 will remain on the site. The company also plans a space recalling the history of the Březňák brand; tours of the historic building ended in spring 2026. In the historic brewery, the operation of the bottling line ended in 2014 and the production of tank and keg beer remained.[1]
The division Heineken Česká republika has long been third on the Czech market after Plzeňský Prazdroj and Pivovary Staropramen. It also owns the Starobrno and Královský pivovar Krušovice breweries and employs more than 450 people.[1][2] In early October 2026 Pivovary Staropramen announced that its Ostrava brewery would gradually end production next year and its brands would be brewed in Smíchov, Prague.[1]
Chronology
- — Heineken announced that it will stop brewing Březňák beer in Velké Březno in the Ústí nad Labem Region and will move production elsewhere. ČTK / České noviny Novinky.cz
Sources
- ČTK / České noviny — 26 October 2026
- Novinky.cz — 26 October 2026