The Suntory Group, as a multifaced beverage and liquor company supported by the blessings of nature such as water and agricultural products, aims to create a society where enriching people's lives and protecting and nurturing the natural environment coexist, and where people and nature have a mutually beneficial impact on each other and can be sustained for many years. To realize a society in which people and nature harmonize each other, the Suntory Group has established the Suntory Group’s Environmental Policy which clearly indicate our prioritized environment initiatives such as "achieving water security", "conserving and regenerating biodiverse ecosystems", "promoting a circular economy", and "transitioning to a net zero-carbon society. In order to provide clear direction to sustainability management, we have formulated "Environmental Vision toward 2050" and "Environmental targets toward 2030" and are promoting efforts to realize a sustainable society.

Suntory Beverage & Food Limited is globally engaged in activities of Water, Greenhouse Gas, Raw Ingredients, Containers and Packaging, Health, Human Rights, and Enriching Life which are set forth in the Sustainability Vision established by the Suntory Group. As a company with the promise of “Mizu To Ikiru”, we have positioned Water, Greenhouse Gas and Plastics as key themes, and are promoting sustainability management.

Water is one of the most important raw materials and a precious shared resource. Therefore, understanding the impact of water on our business activities, local communities, and ecosystems based on water-related risk assessment is essential for sustainable business growth. In addition to continuous reduction of water used at our production sites, we are promoting water source cultivation activities and water sustainability activities based on water risk assessment. In 2003, we started "Natural Water Sanctuary" initiatives in Japan with the aim of improving water source recharge functions and regenerating biodiversity. Currently, the area of activity has expanded to 22 locations in 15 prefectures, covering approximately 12,000 hectares, and recharging more than twice the amount of groundwater pumped up by our plants in Japan. We are also developing water source cultivation activities in cooperation with local communities around the world where we do business, aiming to make more than half of our plants water positive by 2030. We have also expanded our "Mizuiku" (education program of nature and water) which started in Japan, to Vietnam, Thailand, and Indonesia, and last year we also started activities in Spain.

In terms of GHG emission reduction, our vision is to achieve net zero GHG emissions throughout our value chain by 2050, and our target is to reduce GHG emissions at our own sites by 50% and to reduce GHG emissions throughout the value chain by 30% by 2030 vs. 2019. In addition to promoting the use of renewable energy sources, such as the installation of solar panels at the Carcaixent Plant in Spain and the Minami Alps Hakushu Water Plant, we are also working to reduce GHG emissions from multiple angles, including switching from heavy oil to city gas, LNG (liquefied natural gas), and biomass fuels, which have lower GHG emissions. The Kita Alps Shinano-no-Mori Plant which started operation in May 2021, became the Suntory Group’s first zero CO₂ emissions plant in Japan through adoption of solar power generation facility and boilers using biomass fuel, as well as purchasing electricity sourced from 100% renewable energy. We will continue to be bold and innovative in our efforts to switch the electricity we purchase to renewable energy and to promote capital investment through the operation of internal carbon pricing. We are also working with production areas and farmers to reduce GHG emissions by introducing environmentally friendly processes in the tea production process in Japan and to support sustainable agriculture for blackcurrant farmers in the UK.

In the area of plastics, we aim to switch all the PET bottles used globally for Suntory products to be made of recycled or plant-based materials by 2030. The Suntory Group has long been involved in the practical application and promotion of "bottle-to-bottle" horizontal recycling, in which used PET bottles are recycled to make new bottles. We have been actively developing horizontal recycling initiatives overseas as well and following the introduction of PET bottle made from 100% recycled PET bottles for Ribena in the U.K. and Ireland, we introduced 100% recycled PET bottles for May Tea and Pulco in France in 2021. In 2022, we introduced 100% recycled bottles for Lucozade Sport in the U.K. and Ireland and introduced 100% recycled PET bottles in Vietnam which is the first in our Asian region. We will continue to take on the challenge of developing innovative technologies to ensure that plastic containers and packaging do not have a negative impact on the global environment while retaining their useful functions, and by working together with various stakeholders to resolve these issues, we hope to make a significant contribution to the realization of a circular society.

With respect to health, we are expanding our natural and healthy portfolio by leveraging our long-standing expertise in the development of sugar-free and low-sugar beverages such as tea and water in Japan and are aggressively promoting initiatives for low-sugar and sugar-free beverages on a global basis.

With the increasing globalization of corporate activities, human rights initiatives are becoming increasingly important. We believe it is extremely important to respect the human rights of our stakeholders. To promote activities that take human rights into consideration, we have further strengthened our efforts by establishing a human rights policy and encouraging our employees and supply chain to do the same. In addition, we will promote Diversity, Equity & Inclusion based on our belief that to continuously create new value, it is important to proactively incorporate diverse human resources and diverse values, and to ensure fairness and make the most of such diversity.

In order to be a company that contributes to the realization of a sustainable society, we will continue to build trustworthy relationships and collaboration with our diverse stakeholders through communication and timely and appropriate information disclosure. We position sustainability as one of the important pillars of management and committed to passing on a sustainable society to the next generation.

Suntory Group Sustainability Vision

The Suntory Group’s vision on sustainability

As a multifaceted consumer-oriented company, we are dedicated to promoting a sustainable society where nourishing and enriching people’s lives and conserving the natural environment coexist in an interconnected, mutually prosperous relationship. To realize this ambition, we deeply respect the blessings of nature on which our products rely, and engage in a range of corporate social responsibility activities to promote responsible environmental management that ensures sustainable use of natural resources and a healthy natural water cycle. In addition to delivering safe, high-quality products and services that consumers love, we continue to look for opportunities across our entire value chain to contribute to a sustainable society.
Our world faces a wide variety of environmental and social issues, such as water shortages, loss of biodiversity, climate change, pollution and increasing waste, poverty, human rights violations, and more. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)* adopted at the 2015 UN Summit call on businesses to address social issues and to promote a sustainable society. While the world works to solve these problems together, we will continue to tackle these issues as we expand our global business.

* Sustainable Development Goals are targets adopted in a UN Summit in September 2015 that the whole world should tackle by 2030