Protecting water sources for everyday life on the shores of Lake Tai, one of China’s best-known freshwater lakes

Wuxi Yakult Co., Ltd. was established in 2014 in the city of Wuxi on the shores of Lake Tai, China’s third-largest freshwater lake. Throughout its long history, Wuxi has flourished thanks to easy access to water transport via the lake and the Yangtze River. Sometimes called the “Pearl of Lake Tai,” this metropolis on the water is also known as the birthplace of Wu, one of China’s famous Three Kingdoms. Residents of southern Jiangsu and northern Zhejiang provinces source household water from Lake Tai to this day.

Lake Tai, China’s third-largest freshwater lake

In 2007, a widespread outbreak of cyanobacteria in Lake Tai deeply contaminated the lake’s water and threatened the water supply for approximately two million Wuxi citizens. In response, the State Council of the People’s Republic of China , equivalent to Japan’s Cabinet Office, ordered the strengthening of Lake Tai’s water quality management, which accelerated the water pollution prevention initiatives of the local Jiangsu provincial government.
The legal standards for wastewater containing nitrogen and phosphorous are particularly strict. Companies or individuals who violate these laws face large fines and even the risk of arrest. At the same time, all companies and individuals are obligated to report illegal wastewater activities, with accurate reports eligible for financial rewards from the government. Our Wuxi Plant , which manufactures dairy products, creates production wastewater containing nitrogen and phosphorous on a daily basis. For this reason, we have worked to protect the waters of Lake Tai in accordance with these legal standards since the plant’s establishment.

Lake Tai, China’s third-largest freshwater lake

Working with local government and other companies to meet the A-level criterion of the central government’s First Class standards for wastewater

The management standards to meet the First Class A-level criterion are very strict. Ten years ago, when construction planning for the Wuxi Plant began, few companies or facilities had high-level water processing technologies. For this reason, we sought out partnerships with the local government of Wuxi’s Xinwu District as well as with companies specializing in water processing. With their cooperation, we were able to design a water treatment facility specifically for Yakult’s use and introduce wastewater treatment systems designed to preserve and improve Lake Tai’s water quality while protecting it from pollution. Today, we successfully meet the following standards:

Note: Values outside of parentheses apply where the water temperature is greater than 12°C. Values inside parentheses apply where the water temperature is less than or equal to 12°C.

Wastewater standards in Wuxi concern not only water quality, but also place strict limitations on wastewater volume. When Wuxi Yakult Co., Ltd. was first established in 2014, the district’s environmental protection agency stipulated that only 800 tons of wastewater discharge would be allowed per day. Considering the size of our plant, this was a barely manageable amount. At our production peak in the summer of 2019, production wastewater was reaching 900 tons per day, resulting in days where the amount exceeded the agency’s limits. There were times where we were frequently checking the daily amount of actual water discharge and the capacity of the emergency water tank as we struggled to keep everything within permissible limits. When Wuxi Plant 2 was constructed, we received approval to expand our daily wastewater volume limit to 1,300 tons per day, which was a relief for the whole company.

Wastewater analysis machines