Sustainable Procurement Management

Policy

The Fuji Oil Group first formulated the Fuji Oil Co., Ltd. CSR Procurement Guidelines in 2012, and then revised it in 2016 and 2021. We subsequently established our sourcing policies for key raw materials, through the Responsible Palm Oil Sourcing Policy in 2016 and the Responsible Cocoa Beans Sourcing Policy in 2018. In addition, we enacted the Supplier Code of Conduct, and established our Responsible Soybeans and Soy Products Sourcing Policy and Responsible Shea Kernels Sourcing Policy in 2021.

Group policies on sustainable procurement

Policy name Scope Year enacted
Groupwide Supplier Code of Conduct All suppliers of products and services to the Group 2021
Specific raw materials Responsible Palm Oil Sourcing Policy All suppliers of palm oil, palm kernel oil, and palm-derived materials purchased, traded, processed, and sold by the Group 2016
Responsible Cocoa Beans Sourcing Policy All suppliers of cocoa beans purchased, traded, processed, and sold by the Group 2018
Responsible Soybeans and Soy Products Sourcing Policy All suppliers of whole soybeans and soybean protein products procured by the Group 2021
Responsible Shea Kernel Sourcing Policy All suppliers of shea kernels procured by the Group 2021
Specific companies CSR Procurement Guidelines (3rd Edition) Suppliers to Fuji Oil Co., Ltd. First published in 2012

GovernanceGRI: 3-3

The Group’s Sustainability Committee,*1 an advisory body to the Board of Directors, deliberates on and monitors the Group’s response to environmental and social issues including climate change and human rights, reports the results and makes recommendations to the Board. Chaired by the President and CEO, the committee is composed of the COO, CFO, the heads of each business headquarters and functional divisions, and the ESG Advisors (outside directors). Initiatives to address the material ESG issue*2 of Sustainable Procurement are promoted by the chief officer in charge of each commodity.
Under this committee, the Subcommittee on Group Significant Risks discusses and manages Group-wide risks and opportunities across the supply chain, and reports the results to the Management Committee Meeting and Board of Directors for approval at least once a year.

StrategyGRI: 2-24

Collaboration with our suppliers is essential to resolving the social issues involving the Group. We set our vision in the Fuji Oil Group Management Philosophy* as “Together with our stakeholders, we will co-create a sustainable future for food, based on plant-based ingredients that are both delicious and healthy.” A sustainable supply chain is essential to achieve this vision and for which we continue to advance our efforts. We foster relationships of trust with suppliers to address environmental and social issues in the supply chain, and engage in environmental conservation, respect for human rights, fair business practices, risk management and other initiatives with the aim of achieving sustainable growth for all three parties: suppliers, the Group and society.

Risk management

The Fuji Oil Group systematically manages risks and opportunities related to Sustainable Procurement, an area of sustainability matters that address material ESG issues, in alignment with Group significant risks.

Engagement with suppliers

Group-wide engagement with suppliers

Suppliers are our Group’s key partners in creating a sustainable society. Through co-creation with our suppliers, we aim for sustainable growth of all three parties: suppliers, the Fuji Oil Group, and society. This approach is also stipulated in the Fuji Oil Group Supplier Code of Conduct formulated in April 2021. We ask our suppliers in all countries and regions where we do business to comply with the Code and follow other applicable procurement policies of the Group. As of January 31, 2025, we received the signatures of 79% of our suppliers. Going forward, the Group will continue to walk in step with suppliers who have agreed to work with us toward realizing a sustainable society. On the other hand, we will keep reaching out to suppliers who have not yet declared their alignment.

Engagement with suppliers in Japan

In FY2024, as in the previous year, we prepared our supplier evaluation table, which serves as a basis for evaluating suppliers. Besides assessing financial status, quality, price, and delivery time, we also incorporated risk management and environmental responsibility, where in the past we found significant differences among suppliers. We confirmed the current status of about 70 companies and used our findings in supplier evaluations.
To improve the efficiency and rationalization of logistics operations in accordance with the Voluntary Action Plan for Logistics Optimization and Productivity Improvement, adopted in January 2024, we also conducted questionnaire surveys on the current status and points to improve regarding time spent at delivery sites for truck waiting, unloading, and other cargo handling activities. The surveys were done for each product category, by supplier.
With responses from 344 companies (96% response rate), we looked closely at cases where receiving operations took longer than two hours. After discussing how to make improvements where that was occurring regularly, we were able to shorten receiving times in some cases. Starting next fiscal year, we will build a continuous monitoring system and work with suppliers to achieve more efficient supply logistics in response to the driver shortage.

Metrics and targets

Commitments to sustainable procurementGRI: 408-1

The Fuji Oil Group set medium- to long-term goals and KPIs for the sustainable procurement of palm oil and cocoa in June 2020, and of soybeans and shea kernels in June 2021.

Specific initiatives

Sustainable procurement information by raw material

Follow the links below to learn more about our Group’s sustainable procurement initiatives for our main raw materials — palm oil, cocoa, and soybeans — and our strategic raw material, shea kernels.

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