'Green is more than the colour of the bottle': Environmental issues at Heineken Breweries over the long term

Abstract

‘Going green’ has been an important issue for business since the last decade of the twentieth century, but also earlier, companies had to deal with environmental concerns or took measures that had an environmental impact, either positive or negative. Based on archival research, this article looks at the way the Dutch brewer Heineken has reacted to a number of environmental issues during its long history and how it has responded to the evolving concept of sustainability. The article shows that in some cases the company reacted defensively, but in others it was proactive, especially when environmentally friendly measures offered opportunities for innovation. All these measures were taken in the hope of being allowed to keep growing the business.