Director, Executive Officer
Task Force on Nature-Related Financial Disclosures (TNFD)
In February 2024, the Company endorsed the recommendations of the TNFD and announced its participation in the TNFD Forum.
Although climate change has long been a pressing global issue in terms of controlling greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, the Earth is now in a state of profound negative impact, with organism extinction rates having increased 10- to 100-fold compared to average rates seen over the past 10 million years. As an organization dedicated to realizing a more sustainable society, the Group is also committed to contributing to the realization of Nature Positive, defined as the halting and reversal of biodiversity loss in order to put nature on the path to recovery.
Through the analysis of nature-related issues using the TNFD framework, we reaffirmed the fact that among our Group's diverse businesses, the Foods, Meat & Grain Segment, which includes many products such as beef and feedstuff materials, of which the Company is a top importer, is highly dependent on ecosystem services that connect a wide variety of organisms in various ways and in various relationships.
In July 2024, we disclosed the nature-related risks and opportunities of our beef and coffee businesses, which are estimated to have a significant impact on the environment.
Profit is just a by-product of business
In the words of our founder, Fusajiro Kanematsu, “Our purpose as a Company is not only to build a sound and flourishing business, but to fulfill our responsibilities as a corporate citizen, contributing to society and the security and well-being prosperity.” This philosophy continues to serve as the foundation of all the Group’s corporate activities.
Fusajiro was a man who, at the age of 44, took the giant step of entering into trade with Australia, founding what is now the Kanematsu Corporation at a time when life expectancy was estimated at 50 years. His approach was to treat life as a series of challenges with a view toward the future of Japan. Despite already being a successful businessman in the Kansai region at the time of the Company’s founding, Fusajiro made a leap of faith and devoted his entire fortune to advancing the Australian business. At that time, those in the Kansai business community believed “Kanematsu was out of his mind” for his reckless pursuit of the challenge and ideal of restoring to Japanese hands the trading rights that had been monopolized by foreign trading houses since the unequal treaties of the end of the Edo period.
Just what was it that motivated Fusajiro? As a man who held that “profit is just a by-product of business,” this was not about personal gain, but rather about enabling the Japanese people to prosper by espousing fair business practices and thereby ensuring the ongoing enrichment of their way of life. This integrity resonates with us today as we strive to ensure the continued sustainability of our planet by maintaining and revitalizing biodiversity and natural capital.
Under “integration 1.0,” the medium-term business plan that kicked off in April 2024, we have defined our mission as “making supply chains more efficient and sustainable,” incorporating the philosophy that has been passed down from our founder, while establishing “becoming a solutions provider leading the transformation of efficient and sustainable supply chains” as our vision. We intend to promote sustainable businesses that can put the planet’s natural environment on a recovery track and pursue the common good of society as a whole.
Improving ESG Scores
As a result of working on improving our FTSE Russell score under a three-year plan since 2022, we achieved our target score in 2024 and have been selected for inclusion in the "FTSE Blossom Japan Index," one of the domestic ESG indices adopted by the GPIF.
Kanematsu Group ESG scores
| 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTSE Russell | 1.4 | 1.4 | 2.8 | 2.9 | 3.4 |
| S&P Global | 14 | 27 | 32 | 41 | 45 |
| MSCI | BB | BB | BBB | BBB | A |
| CDP (Climate Changes) | - | - | B | B | B |
Key issues discussed by the Sustainability Management Committee (for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025)
- -Disclosure of information regarding sustainability initiatives (human rights, biodiversity, and climate change [CDP], etc.)
- -Report on GHG emissions and analysis of increases and decreases for the fiscal year ending March 2024
- -Progress assessment of initiatives contributing to GHG emission reductions and the amount of contribution
- -Compliance with the European Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD)
Sustainability promotion framework (as of April 1, 2025)
