Reduction of Food Loss and Waste and Upcycling

The Fuji Oil Group has established the Sustainability Committee^*1 as an advisory body to the Board of Directors that is chaired by the President and CEO. From a multi-stakeholder perspective, the committee deliberates on and monitors Reduction of Food Loss and Waste and Upcycling, a priority action to address material ESG issues,^*2 and makes recommendations to the Board. The Group implements related initiatives under the oversight of the Head of R&D Headquarters, the Executive Officer.

• *1 Governance, Strategy, Risk Management, Metrics and Targets > Governance

  https://www.fujioil.co.jp/en/sustainability/sustainability_management/#governance

• *2 Governance, Strategy, Risk Management, Metrics and Targets > Metrics and targets

  https://www.fujioil.co.jp/en/sustainability/sustainability_management/#index

As a manufacturer of food materials and ingredients, the Fuji Oil Group recognizes the efficient use of limited food resources as a material issue, given the concerns over future food supply posed by global population growth, climate change, and biodiversity loss. Food loss and waste reduction is an explicitly defined target of Goal 12 of the SDGs, and we view them as significant challenges for global society. It is the responsibilities of companies to respond to these challenges, and failure to do so will increase the risk of a decline in social reputation. We believe that successfully addressing food loss and waste will be economically beneficial, leading to a reduction in product cost including the cost of waste processing.
As a manufacturer of intermediate food materials, our Group provides products that help extend the best-before date of our customers’ products to in turn reduce end consumers’ food waste, and also aims to effectively use resources through upcycling.

The Fuji Oil Group systematically manages risks and opportunities related to Environmentally Responsible MONOZUKURI (Product Development and Manufacturing Practices), an area of sustainability matters that address the material ESG issues, in alignment with Group significant risks.

• Group significant risks
  Risk type: Strategy/ Environment and human rights/ Procurement

  https://www.fujioil.co.jp/en/ir/policies_and_systems/risk/

Analysis

Our new types of cream, which help extend best-before dates of customers’ products, have been adopted by several companies as a result of customers’ better knowledge and cooperation in maintaining product quality. A customer has also obtained new sales opportunities by expanding the food product lineup.

Next steps

We will focus our efforts on developing ingredients and technologies that maintain the “freshly made” quality of foods. We will also search for ways to make good use of what is typically discarded as waste. In FY2025, we will continue working on the following goals set in FY2024:

Developing ingredients that sustain food quality

Extending the best-before dates of products is one of the key measures promoted by the Japanese government to reduce food waste. By providing technologies and materials that maintain quality, Fuji Oil Co., Ltd. makes retort pouch foods and other non-perishable food products more delicious and varied, which also helps reduce food waste.
With recent labor shortages and measures against food waste, there is rising demand for chilled desserts (Western-style confectionaries) that are pre-frozen for storage and thawed before sale. This has led to a requirement for whipped cream that can withstand frozen storage. In response to this demand, by combining multiple vegetable oil and fats ingredients with our own emulsifying technology, in FY2024 we successfully developed a whipped cream with frozen storage resistance, which is rapidly being adopted in the market.

Wishing to make the delicious taste of mature cheese accessible to more people, we have developed our own fermentation process, which has taken over a decade of research. Using this process, we have created Honjuku^® Fromage P, an easy-to-handle product providing a similar flavor profile to aged cheese together with a natural Parmigiano Reggiano-like aroma without relying on flavorings. Honjuku^® Fromage P is highly rated by customers for its ability to create an intense cheese taste using only a small amount.

Expanding the use of upcycled product SoyBio MA to treat polluted soil