Yakult’s business development and environmental initiatives

Since its founding in 1935, Yakult has engaged in corporate activities that aim to contribute to the health and happiness of people around the world. Today, 41 million bottles of our dairy products are consumed every day in 40 countries and regions around the world (fiscal 2021 data).

However, this also means we have a significant impact on the global environment. Asking how we could reduce the growing burden of our business on the planet, we formulated the Yakult Basic Policy on the Environment in 1997, and have carried out environmentally responsible business activities ever since. In March 2021, noting the increasing demands society makes of corporations in response to the rapidly intensifying environmental issues of recent years, we established the Yakult Group Environmental Vision. This sets out Environmental Vision 2050—our ideal vision of the future, in which we achieve net-zero Scope 1, 2 and 3 carbon emissions by 2050 in order to realize a value chain that has zero environmental impact.

To drive forward effective initiatives based on this vision, we also formulated the medium- and short-term milestones in Environmental Targets 2030 and Environmental Actions (2021–2024) respectively.

Advancing the Yakult Group Environmental Vision

In order to further initiatives toward our ideal vision of the future as set out in the Yakult Group Environmental Vision, in April 2022 we established an Environmental Promotion Department. This team currently plays a central role in strengthening activities within the Group, building cooperative relationships with companies outside the Group, and collaborating with relevant government and municipal bodies.

Some examples of specific initiatives in detail are as follows. Within the Group, purchased energy for manufacturing was switched entirely to renewable energy at 12 dairy product and pharmaceutical plants in Japan^*1 in April 2022, followed by 1 cosmetic plant in July, helping reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. To reduce plastic use, our New Yakult series no longer comes with straws, and we switched to a basic policy of not providing spoons and straws at time of sale in response to the Plastic Resource Circulation Act^*2 of April 2022. Overseas, amid moves to restrict the use of all kinds of plastic products, we are responding to relevant regulations and emissions restrictions in each country or region as necessary. In Europe, for example, we have switched from plastic film to paper for Yakult multipack packaging and outer packaging for distribution. Outside the Group, in November 2021 we revealed our capital participation in R Plus Japan, which engages in activities geared towards making used plastic reusable.

*1 Fukushima Plant, Ibaraki Plant, Fuji Susono Plant, Hyogo Miki Plant, Saga Plant, Yakult Iwate Plant, Yakult Chiba Plant, Yakult Aichi Plant, Yakult Okayama Wake Plant, Yakult Fukuoka Plant, Fuji Susono Pharmaceutical Plant, Yakult Materials Co., Ltd. Fuji Susono Plant

*2 Formally known as the Act on Promotion of Resource Circulation for Plastics

Honoring our corporate slogan

Our corporate slogan is “In order for people to be healthy, everything around them must also be healthy.” We believe that a healthy world is essential for health.

The first thing we can do to help achieve this is ensure that all Group workers understand environmental issues as directly relevant to them as individuals, and take step-by-step action with a sincere attitude. For this reason, we will strive to raise awareness of environmental issues among workers.

Climate change and environmental pollution caused by human activity is putting our planet at risk. We must recognize the gravity of the situation and work toward a solution for this difficult but urgent problem, not just within the Yakult Group but across our entire value chain.

The Yakult Group will come together as one and, in order to realize a society in which people and the planet co-exist, will challenge itself with new initiatives to increase the sustainability of society and the world.

Masao Imada
Director and Senior Managing Executive Officer
Divisional General Manager of Management Support Division