“The Regenerative Tea Scorecard” for tea plantations developed with the Rainforest Alliance to support regenerative farming

TOKYO, April 9, 2024 – in October 2023, Kirin Holdings Company, Limited (Kirin Holdings) and Kirin Beverage Company, Limited (Kirin Beverage) have entered a partnership with the Rainforest Alliance on a project to develop and pilot a regenerative agriculture*1 tea framework, “The Regenerative Tea Scorecard.” The project will begin in some tea plantations in Sri Lanka, the main producer of the tea leaves used in Kirin Gogo-no-Kocha, and a pilot test is scheduled for 2024.
*1 Promotes soil health, on-farm biodiversity conservation, ecosystem restoration, and adequate crop productivity for improved livelihoods.

“The Regenerative Tea Scorecard” is intended to be a tool that farmers and companies can use voluntarily and easily. It is a tool to support tea farms in their transition to regenerative farming. It will be piloted in Kirin's supply chain. Tea farmers can use the “The Regenerative Tea Scorecard” to assess their current farm practices and identify areas of improvement to transition to regenerative agriculture. “The Regenerative Tea Scorecard” is based on the Rainforest Alliance’s definition of regenerative agriculture, which takes a conservation and restoration approach to farming by combining environmentally friendly farming practices with integrated systems management strategies to ensure soil health, on-farm biodiversity conservation, ecosystem restoration, and farmer livelihoods.

About 50%*2 of the black tea leaves imported into Japan come from Sri Lanka, of which 24%*3 are used in Kirin Gogo-no-Kocha. The Kirin Group has been supporting producers to take part in the Rainforest Alliance’s Certification*4 training since 2013, to build better partnerships with important tea-producing regions and the people who work there, and to continue producing tasty and reliable tea beverages. The Kirin Group supported 94 tea farms, equivalent to approximately 30% of all large estates in Sri Lanka, to receive Rainforest Alliance certification by the end of 2022. In 2021, we launched Kirin Gogo-no-Kocha Straight Tea 250ml LL Slim, which is made from 100% Sri Lankan tea leaves, of which more than 90% are Rainforest Alliance certified.
*2 Based on research from the Food Marketing Institute, Inc., 2020 results
*3 Based on 2018 black tea statistics from the Japan Tea Association
*4 An international certification program. Farms and businesses that participate in the program are audited against rigorous sustainability standards based on the triple bottom line: environmental, social, and economic. They are assessed by independent, third-party certification bodies to follow rigorous standard for sustainable agriculture and responsible business practices.

Tea farmers in Sri Lanka face a variety of challenges, including the climate change impacts of drought and heavy rainfall and land use change impacts from urbanization. In July 2022 Kirin Holdings disclosed information related to natural capital*5 on a trial basis, based on the TNFD*6 LEAP Approach (see the Kirin Group Environmental Report 2022PDF：203KB). The Kirin Group Environmental Report 2023, published in July 2023, also covered tea plantations in Sri Lanka, including a detailed analysis of “Locate” (discovering the nature interface) and “Evaluate” (diagnosing dependencies and impacts). It reported that training for the Rainforest Alliance certification was an effective way to address issues. However, certification has not been attained by all farmers, and the Kirin Group is therefore looking to support mainly small farms in their sustainability journey by joining with the Rainforest Alliance to introduce “The Regenerative Tea Scorecard.” Through this activity, the Kirin Group aims to support the practice of regenerative agriculture among tea farmers and improve the sustainability of raw material production areas.
*5 Natural capital is the stock of natural assets that provide society with flows of renewable and non-renewable resources and ecosystem services.
*6 The Nature-related Financial Disclosure Task Force, a risk management disclosure framework for companies to report and act on risks related to natural capital.

The Kirin Group will continue to address complex and interrelated environmental issues (biological resources, water resources, containers and packaging, and climate change) in a holistic approach, and to work with all those involved in the value chain to connect our desire to enjoy and pass on the bounty of the earth’s bounty to future generations. We will proactively promote various initiatives that will have a “positive impact” on nature and people.

About Kirin Holdings

Kirin Holdings Company, Limited is an international company that operates in the Food & Beverages domain (Food & Beverages businesses), Pharmaceuticals domain (Pharmaceuticals businesses), and Health Science domain (Health Science business), both in Japan and across the globe.

Kirin Holdings can trace its roots to Japan Brewery which was established in 1885. Japan Brewery became Kirin Brewery in 1907. Since then, the company expanded its business with fermentation and biotechnology as its core technologies, and entered the pharmaceutical business in the 1980s, all of which continue to be global growth centers. In 2007, Kirin Holdings was established as a pure holding company and is currently focusing on boosting its Health Science domain.

Under the Kirin Group Vision 2027 (KV 2027), a long-term management plan launched in 2019, the Kirin Group aims to become “A global leader in CSV*, creating value across our world of Food & Beverages to Pharmaceuticals.” Going forward, the Kirin Group will continue to leverage its strengths to create both social and economic value through its businesses, with the aim of achieving sustainable growth in corporate value.
* Creating Shared Value: combined added value for consumers as well as for society at large