What did we do to reach our conclusions?
To provide limited assurance on whether the information
in The Report is fairly stated we:
performed a media analysis and internet search
on environmental, safety and social issues relating
to Heineken, to obtain information on relevant
sustainability issues in the reporting period;
reviewed the follow up of the stakeholder dialogue
in The Report;
reviewed the systems and processes for information
management, internal control and processing of the
qualitative and quantitative information in The Report,
at corporate level;
reviewed the systems used for generating, validating
and aggregating the environmental and safety data
at corporate level;
visited three sites in Nigeria, Spain and The Netherlands
to assess the quality of the local data management systems
and the reliability of the reported data;
reviewed the results of twelve local data management
audits performed by Heineken Internal Audit;
reviewed Heineken Internal Audit activities to determine
the plausibility of the information in The Report;
collected and reviewed internal and external
documentation to determine whether the qualitative
information is supported by sufficient evidence;
assessed the reasonableness of the assumptions
underlying the forward-looking statements set out
in The Report;
evaluated whether the information presented in The
Report is in line with our overall knowledge of, and
experience with, sustainability at Heineken.
During the assurance process we discussed changes to the
various drafts of The Report with Heineken, and reviewed the
final version of The Report to ensure that it reflected our
findings.
What are our conclusions?
Based on the procedures performed, as described above, the
information in The Report does not, in all material respects,
appear to be unfairly stated in accordance with the criteria
described in 'Reporting basis' on pages 42-45.
What else did we observe?
Without affecting the conclusions presented above, we would
like to draw readers' attention to the following:
Over the recent years, the results of the internal and external
review activities have shown that the quality of data
management systems at breweries varies per region. In 2009,
Heineken has increased the number and quality of reviews
on data management systems at breweries. In light of
Heineken's assurance ambitions, we recommend to further
improve the quality of data management and review by
applying a risk based regional focus.
Amsterdam, 2 April 2010
KPMG Sustainability
W.J. Bartels RA
51
Heineken N.V. - Sustainability Report 2009
