Respect for human rights
We will prevent and correct human rights issues throughout the value chain and create a safe and secure working environment with our business partners. And we will strive to raise awareness of human rights throughout the Group and promote initiatives to respect the human rights of our employees.
Kirin Group has established a policy on human rights and strives to comply with it.
We ensure that our employees thoroughly understand respect for human rights, and raise awareness of human rights throughout the Group.
Policy and Strategy
Message from Chief People Officer (Group Human Capital Management)
Based on its existing human rights activities, the Kirin Group established the “Kirin Group Human Rights Policy” in February 2018 in accordance with the “United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.” When a coup d'état broke out in Myanmar in February 2021, it was in accordance with this Human Rights Policy that we immediately announced the dissolution of the joint venture.
On the other hand, through our experience in Myanmar, we also sensed that there are challenges in terms of the current human rights management measures. We believe that it is our responsibility to pass down the lessons learned and have decided to revise our Human Rights Policy with the aim of stepping up our human rights management measures to the level of global best practices.
The Kirin Group has set a goal of becoming a global leader in CSV, and human rights management measures are positioned as the foundation for this. Under the new Human Rights Policy, we will strengthen our human rights management measures in all of our business areas, which are expanding from Food & Beverages to Health Science and Pharmaceuticals, and throughout the entire value chain process, from research and development and raw material procurement to the manufacture and sale of products and services, etc.
In order to implement such practices, we provide regular and continuous education and training to executives and employees of the Kirin Group, so that each individual’s awareness of human rights is enhanced and reflected in their daily actions.
We believe that enhancing awareness of human rights will lead to the increased protection of the human rights of our employees, ensuring the motivation and satisfaction of a diverse range of talent working at Kirin, which in turn improves productivity and drives innovation. We aim to create a positive social impact through fostering a culture that respects the human rights of all stakeholders.
The foundation of our philosophy of respecting human rights is from "reverence for life", the brewing philosophy of the Kirin Group's ancestral beer brewing business. This embodies the notion that we must learn about life and develop all life that is capable of development to its highest possible value since we draw out the power of "life" from the agricultural products and yeast used as ingredients in beer brewing, and it serves as the basis of the Kirin Group's philosophy of respect for life and human rights. "Reverence for life" originates from the philosophy of Dr. Albert Schweitzer, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize: "I am life that wills to live, in the midst of life that wills to live.''
We will continue to ensure that the items set forth in the Kirin Group Human Rights Policy are put into practice, including human rights due diligence in accordance with international standards, and will also continue to evolve our efforts through appropriate disclosure of information and dialogue with our stakeholders, leading to the discovery of new human rights issues and their resolution.
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Director of the Board,
Senior Executive Vice President
Chief People Officer (Group Human Capital Management)
Junko Tsuboi
Progress to Date
| Year | Outline of Initiatives | View more |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Began supporting tea plantations in Sri Lanka to acquire Rainforest Alliance Certification, which covers Human Rights issues such as improving working condition and living conditions for tea pickers. | Tea farms |
| 2015 | Selected "Human Rights" as one of the "Group Materiality Matrix (GMM), a set of management issues for sustainable growth”. | Management Issues for Sustainable Growth(Group Materiality Matrix) |
| 2017 | Established the “Kirin Group Sustainable Procurement Policy”, which declares that we approve, support, and implement a set of essential values that work to limit the impact of our procurement activities within the Global Compact areas of human rights, labor, the environment, and anti-corruption. | Policy on Sustainable Procurement |
| 2018 | Created the “Kirin Group Human Rights Policy”, in accordance with “Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights”, endorsed by the United Nations Human Rights Council. | Kirin Group's Human Rights Policy |
| Began carrying out Human Rights due diligence, in accordance with "Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights", endorsed by the United Nations Human Rights Council, and "Kirin Group Human Rights Policy". | Implementing Human Rights Due Diligence | |
| 2020 | Based on the exchange of opinions at the Group CSV Committee on "Measures for Human Rights in Supply Chains," launched a Human Rights project with BSR as an external advisor and formulated a medium- and long-term Human Rights strategy. | Establishment and Operation of the Group CSV Committee |
| 2021 | Established Group Human Rights Meeting*, chaired by Senior Executive Officer of Personnel and General Affairs, to monitor the progress of the medium- and long-term Human Rights strategy and discuss policies, strategies and plans.
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Group Sustainability Meetings on Specific Issues |
| Established the “Kirin Group Sustainable Supplier Code” —a collection of conditions that suppliers must comply with, based on the “Kirin Group Sustainable Procurement Policy”, in order to meet the demands and expectations of society, while continuing to create a variety of value through its business together with our business partners, suppliers. | Policy on Sustainable Procurement | |
| 2022 | Joined Sedex to strengthen risk management for human rights and environmental issues in the global supply chain. | Activities to Promote Sustainable Procurement |
| 2023 | The Kirin Group Human Rights Policy was revised for the first time in five years. In parallel, the Kirin Group Sustainable Supplier Code of Conduct was also revised to take our human rights efforts to the next level. | Kirin Group Human Rights Poricy Policy on Sustainable Procurement |
