New Heineken boss says ‘more to do’ despite stronger beer sales

The new boss of Heineken has said there is “more to do” to speed up progress despite reporting stronger demand for beer.The Dutch brewing giant revealed sales improved in the third quarter of 2026, as the volume of beer bought by customers accelerated.It marked a positive first update since Rafa Oliveira joined Heineken as its new chief executive earlier this month, having joined from coffee and tea maker JDE Peet’s.Mr Oliveira said the group has “confidence” for the rest of the year after a strong performance from its key global brands but indicated there are still areas to improve.He said: “My first impressions are positive, particularly the strength of our brands, the commitment of our people, and the growth potential across our geographic footprint.“We have strong foundations, but we are not translating them into consistent growth and winning with consumers and customers as often as we should.“There is more to do to sharpen execution, increase pace and build a stronger performance culture, with greater accountability across the business.”On Wednesday, the Amstel and Birra Moretti manufacturer revealed net revenues lifted by 4.6% to 8.1 billion euros (£6.8 billion) over the latest quarter, compared with a year earlier.The growth was driven by a 4.8% jump in volumes to 76 megalitres (mhl).Heineken was supported by 9.9% growth across its five top global brands – Heineken, Amstel, Birra Moretti, Tiger and Desperados.It also reported double-digit growth from its low and no-alcohol brands, such as Heineken 0.0.