Recognizing the importance of water in our business activities by protecting forests cultivating water, using water with care, and returning it to nature in a pristine state.

The bounty of nature, water and agricultural products, underpins the main businesses of the Suntory Group. As a company that is “Bringing Water to Life,” above all else we prioritize carrying out business activities in a way that does not stress the water cycle. The most important challenge we at the Suntory Group face in our business activities is achieving water sustainability; in other words, protecting the forests that nurture water, carefully using it, and returning it to nature in its pristine state.

The Suntory Group uses large amounts of groundwater in every step of the manufacturing process of our products. To maintain the sustainability of that groundwater, we signed long-term contracts that last decades with forest owners and in 2003 began developing forests that create water. Centered on the water-resource cultivation areas around our plants, our Natural Water Sanctuary Project is conducted in collaboration with national and local governments, local communities, and experts. Under this Project, we are carrying out water-resource cultivation activities at 15 locations in 12 prefectures nationwide. The Project entails carrying out thorough surveys before beginning work, giving full consideration to the natural environment and ecosystem peculiar to the area, and developing forests with a great capacity for cultivating water resources.

Employees Getting First-hand Experience with Forestry

As part of their environmental education, we offer employees the chance to get first-hand experience in forestry at our Natural Water Sanctuaries. In 2011, experiences were offered at the Natural Water Sanctuary Akagi and two other sanctuaries, with 199 Group employees and their families taking part.

The Suntory Group's plants use a great deal of water in, for example, cleaning production equipment and cooling, in addition to that used as an ingredient in our products. Each plant sets medium-term goals for the reduction of water usage in order to get the most out of this finite resource. We also promote effective water use through the introduction of technologies for reusing and recycling water. Although our water usage increased in 2011 as production increased, we actually reduced per unit production usage through water conservation efforts at our plants.

Using Cascades of Water

Storage tanks for recovered water

A variety of activities related to the Three Rs are being implemented at the Minami Alps Hakushu Water Plant of Suntory Products Ltd. In particular, thanks to our use of a sophisticated “water cascade” recycling process, we have been using our limited water resources in the most efficient way possible, making us an industry leader when it comes to per unit production in relation to the volume of water used.

We set voluntary standards for waste water that are stricter than the legal regulations and manage its quality so that we may release waste water in a state as close to nature as possible. Waste water from our plants is first purified using anaerobic waste water treatment facilities and other equipment before it is released into sewers and rivers. Inspectors use measuring equipment to take daily readings of water quality and temperature under a 24-hour monitoring regime.