Together with the Global Environment
Environmental Policy
The F&LC Group has a Vision of “Discovering new tastiness, Sharing moments of joy.” Accordingly, we will protect the blue oceans and the green earth and value the blessing of food that will last into the future with a view to creating a sustainable society and achieving corporate growth. In this context, we understand that climate change, environmental pollution, the exhaustion of resources and water and a loss of biodiversity are serious issues for the world and for the management of our Group. We have adopted our environmental policy of taking action for addressing these issues.
Sustainable Procurement
through Fair Trade and Procurement Policy
In order to balance the realization of a sustainable society and the growth of the company, cooperation from business partners who supply ingredients is essential. Therefore, we share our procurement policy with our business partners. We explain items such as quality, safety, sustainability, and respect for human rights, and ask for their understanding and cooperation, including self-checks. We also ask new business partners to understand our procurement policy, and open our doors equally to them, aiming to achieve coexistence and prosperity between our business activities and the environment and society as a whole.
Basic Procurement Policy
At FOOD & LIFE COMPANIES, we aim to realize a sustainable society and grow as a company, and under our vision of “Let’s change the deliciousness of everyday life. Let’s spread joy to the world,” we not only comply with laws and social norms when procuring raw materials, but also continue to provide safe and secure products.
We will work with our business partners to achieve the following goals, aiming for coexistence and prosperity between our business activities and the environment and society.
(1) Procurement Ethics
We procure products with the highest priority on providing our customers with a stable supply of safe and secure food, based on the principles of fairness, impartiality and transparency.
(2) Compliance
We will comply with the laws, regulations, and social norms of applicable countries and regions.
(3) Quality and Safety
In order to ensure the quality and safety of our products, we will thoroughly manage quality by complying with laws and regulations, implementing our own assessments, concluding specifications, etc. We will also ensure safety by inspecting and auditing the manufacturing process of our products as required by our company.
(4) Respect for Human Rights and Labor
We will comply with international standards, respect the human rights of workers in our supply chain, and not be complicit in any human rights violations. We will strive to create an environment that is free of all forms of forced labor and child labor.
(5) Sustainability
We strive to make sustainable and effective use of resources, reduce food waste, improve production efficiency, and engage in procurement that takes into consideration biodiversity and the maintenance of ecosystems.
(6) Anti-corruption
We strive to prevent corruption in all its forms, including extortion and bribery.
(7) Collaboration with Business Partners
We ask our suppliers, as important business partners, to understand this procurement policy and cooperate with us, including by conducting self-checks, etc. We are equally open to new suppliers.
Reducing Food Loss and Effectively Utilize Marine Life Resources
Aiming for Sustainability through the Establishment of a Procurement Base
As we aim to provide safe and secure food to customers around the world, we believe that we cannot avoid the social issue of the sustainability of marine resources. In order to ensure stable production and utilization of resources, we are promoting the strengthening of our procurement base and working to optimize the entire supply chain from upstream to downstream.
Working to Reform the Supply Chain to Achieve Sustainable Procurement
Our group defines the procurement of ingredients as “upstream,” the processing and transportation of ingredients as “midstream,” and sales, which are the point of contact with customers, as “downstream.” As our business requires the procurement of many ingredients, one of our major issues is working to ensure a stable supply of limited marine resources.
Accordingly, we are strengthening our upstream and midstream efforts, such as establishing a competitive advantage not only in downstream businesses but also in procurement, including aquaculture, and thoroughly cutting food waste and costs by utilizing digital transformation for procured resources. By leveraging our downstream strengths, which include an overwhelming customer base, and in cooperation with external partners, we will work to ensure the stable use of marine resources throughout the entire supply chain.
Building a Procurement Foundation in Upstream Businesses
Amid concerns about future major environmental changes such as climate change, there are also fears of a decline in wild catch production. In addition, rising feed costs are also an issue, and the procurement of marine resources that does not depend on wild fishing is becoming increasingly important. As a countermeasure, we are working on the development of new technologies such as seed development and feed improvement/substitution through investment and business alliances with external companies and cutting-edge technologies. By strengthening our procurement base in the upstream business, we aim to ensure stable quality and production volume.
Establishing a Joint Venture with a Specialist Company to Achieve a 50% Aquaculture Ratio
As of 2021, the Group’s procurement ratio of marine resources is 65% wild and 35% farmed. Aiming for further stable production and utilization of marine resources, we have set a target of a 50% farmed ratio in the future. As a concrete initiative, we have established an aquaculture business company, Marineverse Co., Ltd., and are promoting support for the aquaculture industry through the supply of seeds, feed, etc.
Taking on the Challenge of Next-generation Aquaculture through Technological Innovation and Research and Development
As the environment for aquaculture changes dramatically, we are investing in and conducting joint research with university-originated start-ups that have genome editing and cutting-edge genome analysis technologies, which are attracting attention as next-generation technologies. Through this business, we are working to realize a sustainable aquaculture industry by improving productivity through improved breeding and seed development that responds to the changing environment.
Development of Next-generation Feed and Aquaculture Equipment
We plan to strengthen research and development of next-generation feed ingredients and recycling of feed ingredients, aiming to break away from reliance on natural fish meal as an ingredient, and to promote the standardization of feed. In addition to maintaining and managing costs and quality, we will strive to ensure the sustainability of feed ingredients by fulfilling our social responsibility for ingredients, such as traceability. In addition, due to population decline and rising production costs, aquaculture sites are required to improve productivity and reduce production costs through labor-saving and manpower-saving measures. We aim to procure sustainable marine resources by collaborating with aquaculture equipment manufacturers and supporting the development of next-generation aquaculture equipment.
TOPICS
Supporting Fish Farmers to Ensure a Stable Supply
Owase Bussan Co., Ltd., a supplier for the past 20 years that focuses on the farming of yellowtail and hamachi, is one of the companies in which our company has a capital investment. By collaborating with our company, we aim to expand farmed fish and ensure a stable supply.
Sushiro’s Exclusive Rice Contributes to Producers
With the full cooperation of Zennoh Pearl Rice, we have contracted with a producer who produces rice specifically for Sushiro, which is perfect for our sushi rice, and we are working to ensure a stable supply of rice and improve its quality.
Reducing Food Loss through DX Utilization
Amid concerns about future major environmental changes such as climate change, there are also fears of a decline in wild catch production. In addition, rising feed costs are also an issue, and the procurement of marine resources that does not depend on wild fishing is becoming increasingly important. As a countermeasure, we are working on the development of new technologies such as seed development and feed improvement/substitution through investment and business alliances with external companies and cutting-edge technologies. By strengthening our procurement base in the upstream business, we aim to ensure stable quality and production volume.
Aiming for Cross-sectional Logistics Management through Digital Transformation
In order to ensure food procurement without waste, our group is building an AI demand forecasting system. We aim to manage the supply chain across the board by linking data with logistics companies and production and processing manufacturers, and to collect and accumulate transaction data with a unified ID. We also aim to optimize procurement volume and realize joint transportation across brands.
Reducing Food Waste Using Digital Transformation and AI
In order to continue delivering high-quality, delicious products at reasonable prices, it is important to waste as little food as possible. Since 2002, Sushiro has incorporated IT into its store operations to reduce food waste. By understanding customer needs in numerical terms, Sushiro is able to purchase products with high demand and avoid stock shortages, while also increasing the motivation of management to reduce food waste, making it easier to implement specific actions and measures at stores. In the future, Sushiro will continue to work on evolving its use of AI to further improve prediction accuracy, and will expand its use to purchasing and inventory management as well, promoting further reductions in food waste.
Making Full Use of Precious Marine Resources
It is generally said that only about 40% of a fish, such as the belly, can be used for sushi, but as our group purchases the whole fish, we use the remaining parts in our products as well. We find value in even the bones and bones of the fish, and have built a scheme to use all of the ingredients across the boundaries of our group’s brands. For example, parts suitable for tuna nigiri are used at Sushiro, while the head is stewed by chefs at Kaiten Sushi Misaki. The belly meat, which cannot be removed without manual labor, is served as a sake snack at Sugidama.
The basis of our business is the idea that the “back and belly” parts used for sushi have equal value in terms of deliciousness as the bones and bones. Since our founding, we have inherited the Japanese culinary philosophy that “no part of a fish should be thrown away,” and we continue to develop menu items that utilize parts that cannot be used for nigiri, such as using bones in the ramen on Sushiro’s menu.
Achieving Carbon Neutrality (TCFD)
Response to TCFD Recommendations
Our Group’s VISION is “Change the taste of everyday life. Spread joy to the world.” In order to continue to provide safe and delicious food to our customers, it is essential to take sustainable initiatives with an eye to the future in our business activities. In particular, since our Group uses a wide variety of marine, fishery, agricultural and forestry resources as raw materials, we position climate change as one of our major management risks and will disclose information related to climate change based on the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).