Human Rights

We have set the goal of becoming a global leader in CSV^*1 in the domains of Food & Beverages, Health Science and Pharmaceuticals under our corporate philosophy: "KIRIN brings joy to society by crafting food and healthcare products inspired by the blessings of nature and the insights of our customers". We recognize respect for human rights as the foundation of all of our business activities: it is a prerequisite to solving social issues through our business and achieving sustainable growth together with society.

The Kirin Group regards respect for the human rights of all stakeholders as a key management issue and will continue to address this issue and develop a system therefor.

To respect the human rights of all stakeholders, we take efforts to identify, prevent, and mitigate adverse human rights impacts and implement appropriate measures for remediation.

Beyond this, we will accelerate innovation through diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, aiming to create positive impact and further enhancement of social value.

Human rights are the inherent rights of every human being.

Based on the conviction that “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights,”^*2 the Kirin Group positions its Human Rights Policy (hereafter referred to as “this Policy") as the dominant policy for all documents and standards ^*3 related to management measures that support respect for human rights within the Kirin Group’s business activities. As such, this Policy applies to all executives and employees^*4 of the Kirin Group^*5.

We request all business partners involved in the value chain to acknowledge and comply with this Policy.

We regard all activities throughout the value chain in all business areas of the Kirin Group, including the consumption, use, and disposal at R&D, procurement of raw materials, manufacturing, transportation, distribution, marketing, sales, and services, as potentially having direct or indirect human rights impacts.

We support the international human rights standards^*10 including International Bill of Human Rights,^*6 the International Labour Organization's (ILO) Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work^*7, the MNE Declaration^*8, the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights,^*9 the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact, the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, etc. and are committed to continuing to respect human rights in accordance with the procedures set forth therein.

We are a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact.

We comply with the laws and regulations of each country and region. Where national law and international human rights standards differ, we will follow the higher standard; where they are in conflict, we will require ways to respect internationally recognized human rights to the greatest extent possible.

If it becomes clear that our business activities have caused or contributed to any adverse human rights impacts, we will fulfill our responsibility to respect human rights by working to remedy the situation through dialogue and appropriate procedures based on international standards^*11

We continuously work to ensure respect for human rights of all people associated with the Kirin Group. We strive to identify potential human rights impacts and stakeholders who may be subject to adverse human rights impacts related to our business, prevent and mitigate adverse impacts and implement appropriate remediation measures wherever adverse impacts have actually occurred. We do not tolerate any form of discrimination based on race, color, ethnicity, nationality, social status, lineage, sex, disability, health condition, religion, ideology, faith, sexual orientation, gender identity, occupation or occupational status.

We also recognize that vulnerable groups throughout the value chain are likely to be subject to adverse human rights impacts and will give special consideration to respecting the human rights of social minorities, including highly vulnerable people, women, children, persons with disabilities, ethnic minorities, indigenous people and linguistic minorities.

We oppose any form of slavery or forced labor, including human trafficking, and child labor^*12 throughout the value chain of our business activities.

We recognize the importance of understanding our human rights impacts from the perspective of those affected.

In addition to the above, we will give consideration to potential human rights risks in our marketing activities and other communications^*14 and will not use discriminatory expressions or expressions that may have an adverse impact on children.

We will give special consideration to human rights related to business ethics, such as ethical research and development and responsible marketing and sales, as well as human rights in conflict-affected and high-risk countries, achieve diversity, equity and inclusion, and respect human rights related to the entire value chain.

The Board of Directors of Kirin Holdings is responsible for overseeing Kirin Group's respect for human rights, the policies and action plans for addressing human rights issues, and the status of management measures. For the Senior Executive Officer and the Director of the Board & Senior Executive Officer, we have adopted a system whereby their human rights management measures are reflected in their remunerations.

The Executive Officer of Group Human Capital Management is responsible for efforts to respect human rights.

The Group Business and Human Rights Meeting^*15 has been established as a sub-committee of the Kirin Holdings Group CSV Committee to draft human rights policies, strategies and plans, and monitor the progress of the roadmap for human rights. The content of the meetings is reported to the Group CSV Committee and reported to and discussed by the Board of Directors and reflected in the Group's overall strategies.

In addition, we have established a Team in Charge of Business and Human Rights ^*16 to carry out domestic and international human rights practices. The team conducts human rights due diligence and relief responses to human rights issues, as well as education and training on human rights, which are continuously enhanced through a regular cycle of planning, execution, and monitoring to ensure that Kirin Group executives and employees are capable of respecting human rights in their daily activities.

We conduct human rights due diligence to gain a deep understanding of the countries and regions we operate in, together with the various human rights issues that exist in each stage of the value chain, in order to identify, prevent and mitigate the potential adverse human rights impacts related to our business in accordance with the United Nation Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights^*9 and the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Business Conduct^*17

We regard human rights due diligence as an ongoing process and will implement the process of identifying human rights issues in the value chain, planning and implementing remediation, monitoring, disclosing information, and communicating with external stakeholders.

We will deliver an appropriate and effective remedy where we identify that we have caused or contributed to adverse human rights impacts.

We will play a role in remediation where adverse human rights impacts are directly or indirectly linked to our products and services due to business relationships.

We take all grievances of our stakeholders seriously and are committed to providing appropriate remedy towards an effective resolution.

To ensure access to remedy, we have established a grievance hotline^*16 available to all stakeholders as an effective response mechanism to address human rights concerns, and we will implement appropriate measures in response to raised grievances. We ensure that the personal information of the person making a report is protected and prohibit such person from being treated unfairly or subjected to intimidation or retaliation. We do not tolerate any threats, intimidation, or physical or legal attacks on human rights defenders, including those who exercise their right to oppose various forms of human rights abuses.

We will disclose our progress in our efforts to respect human rights and the results of human rights due diligence in a timely and appropriate manner through Kirin Holdings Company's website, etc.

We will continue to engage with our various stakeholders, including vulnerable populations, to promote our human rights activities.

We have benefited from the views of internal and external stakeholders including the labor union, in revising the Human Rights Policy established in 2018.

We will continue to regularly review and evolve our practices to respect human rights based on changes in societal demands, including laws and regulations, as well as the business environment and business activities, etc. surrounding the Kirin Group.

This Policy has been approved by our Board of Directors and signed by the President & CEO.

We have established a Team in Charge of Business and Human Rights to carry out domestic and international human rights practices. The team conducts human rights due diligence and remedial actions to human rights issues, as well as education and training on human rights, which are continuously enhanced through a regular cycle of planning, execution, and monitoring to ensure that Kirin Group executives and employees are capable of respecting human rights in their daily activities.