Heineken is a proud company. In itself, this puts
additional pressure on us to act and to respond
as a responsible member of society. In this regard,
the organisation was proud to have achieved
the leadership position in the beverage category
of the SAM Dow Jones Sustainability Index.
It is a good reflection of the efforts we have made
in the last few years to build action and impact
on our sustainability and responsibility agenda.
You will read in this report about our progress
on many issues including those that relate to our
commitment to the responsible consumption of
our brands. Over the coming years we will continue
to build both our investment in, and action on,
this aspect of our business. Where relevant and
possible, we will increasingly do this in partnership
with industry, government, non-governmental
organisations (NGOs) and other third parties.
We have also made progress this year against
our energy and water targets. Whilst we still have
much to do to achieve our overall targets for
energy, we are on the right track. In particular,
I am pleased that those businesses for which we
set a target in 2002 have achieved their goal three
years ahead of schedule. Our challenge now is
to ensure that the newly acquired businesses, up
to the end of 2007, also deliver on these targets.
Unfortunately, we cannot only bring good news.
In 2007, five employees and three contractors lost
their lives while working for or commuting to and
from Heineken. We offer our condolences and
continued support to the families, friends and
colleagues they left behind. In 2008, we will
redouble our efforts to ensure that all necessary
advice, precautions and policies are in place and
enforced, regardless of whether this relates to
production, construction or road safety.
To conclude, I would like to thank our employees
for their work and commitment and our
stakeholders for their comments, challenges and
positive feedback. Collectively, this has helped us
to build a stronger, more sustainable business.
In 2007, we had a good year. We aim to build
an even better future, for our Company, our
stakeholders and for the societies in which we
live and work.
Jean-Frangois van Boxmeer
Chairman Executive Board/CEO
Amsterdam, 31 March 2008
Heineken N.V. Sustainability Report 2007
