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Our 10-year vision
Our 10-year vision
Since our founding in 1949, Riken Vitamin has upheld the corporate philosophy of contributing to better human health, nutrition, and society through technologies and products which effectively utilize natural materials. We harness our extraction, refinement, and concentration technologies for product development and usage proposals, expanding our scope of business. Our insistence on developing products which respond to dietary and societal needs has led to our product lineups in our food, improving agents, and healthcare businesses.
In the coming with- and post-COVID world, we will be called upon to respond to various changes in the business landscape, including demographic shifts, climate change, and COVID-prompted changes in dietary habits. How, then, should we envisage ourselves as a company 10 years in the future? We took a new look at our philosophy and the coming business landscape and established our medium- to long-term vision of becoming a growth company that supports a sustainable world through specialty products and services. We will drive sustainable corporate management in which we integrate our corporate strategies and sustainability initiatives, aiming to be a growth company by helping to solve the sustainability challenges facing our stakeholders and society at large through our specialty products and services which leverage our unique strengths.
Our focus last year was to restore trust and formulate long-term strategies toward the next phase of growth, for which we made a range of reassessments. In FY2022, we will take the first step toward our medium- to long-term vision in alignment with the new medium-term management plan announced in May. In our new medium-term management plan, we set forth our basic sustainable management policy consisting of: Conducting our business in a social and environmentally conscious manner under a sound system of governance; achieving sustained growth through specialty products and services which help solve social and environmental challenges; and moving forward as a company that is trusted by society and at which our people feel proud to work. At the core is our founding philosophy of effective utilization of natural materials, and our unique technological prowess. Whether B2B or B2C, we aim to be a special, indispensable presence for our customers. Becoming that kind of specialty company will be the key to sustained growth.
Toward becoming a sustainable company
Sustainable management is our commitment to fulfilling our roles and responsibilities as members of society, and growing together with everyone around the globe. Taking steady steps to execute this commitment in the medium and long term is the grand design to lead us to our best growth strategies.
In 2019, we identified key themes (materialities) to focus on. Through our engagement in these areas, we contribute to the sustainable development goals (SDGs) corresponding to each.
One of our key themes is R&D as a companywide effort, in which we adhere to our policy of effective utilization of natural materials. For instance, we are looking to expand the use of our naturally derived chemical improving agents into the agricultural sector. We are testing the performance of our chemical improving agent as a cedar pollen dispersal inhibitor so that we can register it as an agrochemical. We will also work to expand sales of environmentally friendly products, including improving agents to increase the biomass content of plastics and improving agents for biodegradable plastics.
Curbing climate change and reducing our environmental footprint through pollution prevention and environmental consideration are themes which we absolutely must engage in if we are to achieve a sustainable world. To help address climate change, the Riken Vitamin Group set new goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% in FY2030 and to achieve carbon neutrality by FY2050. In April 2022, we announced our support of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations and will actively disclose information on how climate change impacts our business activities.
To ensure that the seaweed aquaculture industry can continue to grow sustainably in the future, we are applying the results of our wakame research to a variety of seaweeds. For instance, we are conducting R&D on mozuku seedlings in Okinawa. In 2021, we began a land-based aquaculture project involving suji-aonori in our newly established Rikuzentakata Base facility in Iwate Prefecture. Seaweed has the potential to solve global challenges. We have one of the longest, most established track records on seaweed R&D among food manufacturers in Japan. We intend to expand our research into environmental issues, and transform ourselves from the “Riken of wakame” into the “Riken of seaweed.”
In line with our management philosophy of helping to enrich our society through healthy, enjoyable foods, our Group will expand the geographical center of our business from Japan to other parts of Asia and to North America. We wish to achieve sustained growth as a specialty company in the fields of foods, improving agents, and healthcare.
Riken Vitamin Co., Ltd.
President & Representative Director
Kazuhiko Yamaki
