Message from Top Management

The Kirin Group has been engaged in CSV (Creating Shared Value) management, striving to generate both social and economic value through its alcoholic beverages, non-alcoholic beverages, pharmaceuticals, and health science businesses. We have positioned four environmental themes as critical management issues within the“ Group Materiality Matrix (GMM)” and have taken an integrated approach. As if to confirm that, recent events have highlighted changes in the relationship between business and the environment, emphasizing the growing importance of strategically addressing environmental issues.

In 2025, discussions on maintaining industrial competitiveness while accelerating progress toward climate goals are intensified. Some financial institutions and authorities have withdrawn from international decarbonization frameworks or ease sustainability regulations. Meanwhile, climate disasters such as large-scale forest fires are occurring frequently. Management must steer environmental management under these highly uncertain circumstances. It is crucial to accelerate climate change adaptation and the transition to a decarbonized society as a strategic issue, while maintaining competitiveness. In September 2024, a brewery in Ashville of New Belgium Brewing, a North American craft beer company under the Kirin Group, was temporarily forced to close due to hurricane damage. The safety and well-being of local employees was given top priority, and through cooperation with partner companies and the local community, operations were able to resume before the end of the year. However, this incident served to remind us that climate change is having an impact on the Group’s business.

We recognize the importance of natural capital, which forms the foundation of our business, and aim to positively impact society through our operations while considering environmental trends and regionality. With the goal of“ Enrich the Earth with Positive Impact” by 2050, we are committed to advancing specific measures to address environmental issues in an integrated manner.

The“ CSV Commitment” is a medium- to long-term action plan that each business undertakes to achieve the“ CSV Purpose,” which translates the Corporate Philosophy into social raison d’etre. We review and update our goals annually, report progress to the Kirin Holdings Board of Directors quarterly, and link it to executive performance evaluations. Through the execution of the CSV Commitment, which includes environmental initiatives, we create social value across the group, strengthen competitiveness, and drive business growth, thereby deepening our CSV management.

My creed is“ Go to the gemba or actual worksites, See the actual things happening, and Know the actual situation”, which applies equally to our environmental efforts. Achievements in supporting farmers to obtain the biodiversity certifications, steadily advancing decarbonization roadmaps across supply chains and business sites, launching environmentally friendly products, researching chemical recycling of PET bottles for social implementation at the Institute for Package Innovation and efficiency improvements at the distribution and sales stages—all these site-specific efforts along the value chain contribute to tangible progress. Going forward, I will continue to prioritize the opinions at worksites and strive to realize a sustainable society.