TOKYO, Japan – Suntory Group has announced that from April 1st, the company purchase 100% renewable electricity for all 30 directly owned manufacturing sites and R&D facilities in Japan¹. This will amount to a reduction equivalent to approximately 150,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per year², which will greatly contribute to meeting the company’s 2030 goal of halving GHG emissions in its direct operations³. In addition, 8 other facilities in Japan such as the Suntory Hall, the Suntory Museum of Art and Suntory Holdings’ headquarter office will also switch all of their purchased electricity to be sourced from 100% renewable energy.
In the Americas and Europe, 30 out of 35 manufacturing sites already purchase 100% renewable electricity. With this new addition in Japan, over 90% of purchased electricity used in the company’s owned manufacturing sites and R&D facilities in these regions will be supplied by renewable sources. This is a significant step in meeting the company’s target to achieve 100% renewable electricity in all 65 directly owned manufacturing sites and R&D facilities in Japan, the Americas and Europe by 2022*1.
The company procures renewable electricity such as through purchasing of green electricity products, renewable electricity certificates or guarantees of origin, and on-site generation through installments of solar panels.
“As a company that delivers the blessings of nature, we are committed to reducing our environmental footprint across our business,” says Makiko Ono, COO of Sustainability Management at Suntory Holdings. “Shifting to 100 percent renewable electricity is a crucial step in decarbonizing our business. There is still much more work to be done and we will accelerate our work by taking immediate actions wherever possible.”
In addition to the four carbon neutral soft drinks plants in France, in 2021, the company opened its first carbon neutral plant in Japan, the Suntory Kita-Alps Shinano-no-Mori Water Plant. The Fred Booker Noe Distillery opened in 2021 in Kentucky, US, is also powered by an electric boiler using renewable electricity.
Suntory Group will further accelerate its work to meet its 2030 target to halve GHG emissions in its direct operations*3 such as by investing a total of approximately 100 billion JPY (equivalent to approximately 900 million USD) by 2030 to shift to low-carbon alternatives to ultimately achieve net zero GHG emissions across its entire value chain by 2050.
¹ For its alcohol and non-alcohol beverage business
² Based on 2020 emissions level
³ Total reduction versus 2019 baseline in scopes 1 and 2
