A strategic natural resource
Throughout its existence Heineken has always been thoroughly aware of the impor
tance of clean water. The brewing of beer requires barley, hops and yeast-and suffi
cient water of an excellent quality. The availability of this water is a prerequisite for
the continuity and further growth of our Company. Moreover, as a corporate citizen,
we bear the responsibility for the conscientious and efficient use of water, a responsi
bility which includes the reduction of water consumption and the treatment of waste
water. In order to act in accordance with our responsibilities we have laid down the
principles governing the use of water in a statement (the Heineken Water Policy
Statement), we have specified objectives and have drawn up a plan for the systematic
monitoring and evaluation of our water policy.
The Heineken Water Policy Statement
On 20 October 1999, this statement was issued by the Director Corporate Production
Policy Control. The content of this statement is consistent with the principles laid
down in the Heineken Company Environmental Policy Statement.
We measure the quality and the availability of water. These measurements are conse
quently used in the verification and, where necessary, modification of our policy, thus
ensuring a sustainable balance with both the natural surroundings of all our sources
and other users of water.
A further important element in our water management programme is the specifica
tion of target figures for the quantity of water to be used in the production process
and of the wastewater to be discharged. A comparative study of our individual brewe
ries all over the world revealed that the specific consumption of water varies between
4 and 20 hectolitres per hectolitre of beer produced by the brewery, with an average
consumption of 7.3 hi. From a perspective of eco-efficiency a large number of brewe
ries have adopted the voluntary target of less than 7 hi water per hi beer. In order to
provide support to Heineken's breweries all over the world we have developed a tool
that indicates the potential for the reduction of the use of water and the concomitant
investments involved in achieving these reductions. We have used this information to
specify the target figure stated in Section 3.3, which stipulates that from the year
2002 onwards none of the breweries in the Heineken Company may consume
amounts of water in excess of 7 hl/hl.
Water
A GROWING AWARENESS OF WATER:
TRANSFERRING OUR VISION
The mere specification of targets is
not sufficient. In order to achieve
our objectives we have initiated the
'Aware of water' project, which is
oriented both towards the internal
organisation and towards the out
side world. Within our Company
we wish to increase awareness of
every aspect of water consump
tion. To this end a video production
specifically intended for the
internal organisation has been
produced, in which the Chairman
challenges all employees in the
countries in which Heineken is
active. This video is supported by
the 'Aware of Water toolkit',
which contains information for the
company management and the
environmental co-ordinators of
the individual production facilities.
In combination these measures
enable Heineken to communicate
clearly its vision, approach and
objectives.
HEINEKEN ENVIRONMENT REPORT 1998-1999