Heineken is trialling the placement of draught beer dispensers in retail outlets for customers to purchase for consumption at home in reusable bottles.
The pilot program is being tested in France in partnership with local brewer Gallia Paris at the new Monoprix Montparnasse. Three local craft beers will be available via a new smart dispenser technology that will provide insights as to how to deliver the concept to scale, with an expanded pilot to be launched in three more countries during the next phase.
“At Heineken, we always put primary focus on the filling process & packaging to offer our consumers best quality beers in the safest and highest standards of hygiene,” said the firm’s global innovation manager for draught systems & packaging Edwin Griffioen. “These stations use our unique technologies to guarantee that the beer inside is well protected, remains fresh, & ensures that the beer maintains great taste.”
The system incentivises customers to return or reuse the glass bottles and also sources local beer to reduce the carbon footprint involved in transport, delivering a sustainability angle to the project.
“Heineken has been building the quality & image of draught beers for decades, while simultaneously ensuring we become more green and rethinking how we can innovate to make a positive step towards waste reduction,” said Heineken’s global innovation manager for home draughts Chadi Abdo.
“By developing this innovation, we aim to offer our customers a new way to enjoy a perfectly fresh draught beer, at home, delivered in a sustainable way in-store.”
