We have announced our plans to build our second brewery in the world in Brazil, which will complement the existing brewery in Spain aimed primarily at the European market. The chosen location, Poços de Caldas, in the state of Minas Gerais, fulfils all the requisites needed to guarantee the strict quality demands of our wide range of beers. We started our Brazilian project in 2008 and with it we have established ourselves as a reference Premium European beer operator, a growing sector in Brazil.
We have announced an agreement to build our first production centre outside Spain. Within our expansion plans and to consolidate the bases of our international growth, our company has taken the first steps to build our own brewery in Brazil. The location chosen to carry out the project is Poços de Caldas, in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. This investment, initially estimated at 100million Reais, will have an initial installed capacity of 20 million litres, which can be extended according to demand.
Estrella Galicia continues to be a 100% family-run, independent company, led by our CEO, Ignacio Rivera, member of the fourth generation of the Rivera family running the company that has maintained the artisan beer tradition since 1906.
The Brazilian market, with a population of over 200 million people, is the most important for our company outside Europe, and offers great potential for both consumption on a global scale, and within the Premium segment, which is growing rapidly in the region.
In the words of our CEO, Ignacio Rivera, “We have absolute trust in Brazil’s potential and in the Brazilian consumer, that have welcomed our products with open arms, and we are sure that by building this brewery we will consolidate our commitment to this market and with the regional growth of our products, as a stable operator that generates wealth and employment in the region.”
The start of the investment to build this brewery in Brazil has been announced with the signature of a letter of intent by Ignacio Rivera with Fernando Pimentel, governor of the state of Minas Gerais, and Sérgio Azevedo, Mayor of Poços de Caldas, in the Palacio da Liberdade de Belo Horizonte, the capital of Minas Gerais.
The location chosen, Poços de Caldas, gathers all the basic requisites needed to develop our company’s recipes guaranteeing the strict quality demands of our wide range of beers: Estrella Galicia, Estrella Galicia 0,0, 1906 Reserva Especial, 1906 Black Coupage and 1906 Red Vintage.
Our Brazilian project began in 2008 and it has allowed us to establish ourselves as a reference Premium European beer operator, a growing sector in Brazil. “Estrella Galicia do Brasil” has become a part of Brazilian society with local social responsibility programmes, in collaboration with the Fundación Meninos do Morumbi, that strive to integrate young people from the favelas into society through the arts. Our tradition of supporting music, fostering new talents of the independent Brazilian scene, with our Son Estrella Galicia programme, as well as in sport with motorcycle rider Álex Barros, searching for talent among local riders, and with our most famous sponsorship of Sport Club Corinthians Paulista, most popularly known simply as Corinthians.
About Hijos de Rivera
With over 110 years of history, at Hijos de Rivera we have a wide range of products that include beer, mineral water, wine, cider, and liqueurs. We face the future with the backing granted by an astounding growth resulting in a turnover of over 400 million euros in 2016 and 236 million litres of beer, a figure that has doubled in the last five years.
In Spain, we have become established as a prestigious operator with an international vocational brand, with our products present in over 40 countries around the world, and being very well received by consumers.
