Overview
- Foster’s will drop from 3.7% to 3.4% ABV from February 2026, following a prior reduction from 4.0% in January 2023.
- Heineken cites the UK duty band that charges £9.61 per litre of alcohol at 1.3–3.4% ABV versus £21.01 at 3.5–8.4% as a key driver.
- The company says master brewers refined the recipe and ran extensive consumer tests to ensure the flavour remains unchanged.
- NIQ data show off-trade Foster’s sales fell 13.7% to £252.8 million in the year to April, reflecting pressure on demand.
- Heineken also notified pubs of a 2.97% price increase for draught products, as rivals including Carlsberg Pilsner, Coors Light, Grolsch and Heineken’s Sol shift to 3.4% ABV or below.