The demand for products that can easily replenish proteins is growing due to interest in body building and habits of training resulting from a rising health awareness, and as prevention for sarcopenia and frailness in the elderly. The Morinaga Group is expanding its lineup of protein supply products among the “in-” brand, including “in Jelly.” Recently, we have been working on enhancing added value such as by introducing E lutein, which strengthens the function of proteins.
There is an increasing occurrence of heat strokes due to the rising average temperature along with global warming. The Morinaga Group agrees with the Heat Illness Prevention - Communication Project, and is responding to the needs for replenishing water and salt through our products of in Jelly <Energy Lemon>, in Tablet, Morinaga Amazake, and Ice Box.
In May 2023, we sponsored an online sports event called Satsuki Run & Walk by R-bies, INC., which organized the website RUNNET and has connections with many runners. The event makes it possible for people to participate in running and walking events anytime, anywhere, if they have a smartphone. As even those who are not good at exercising and the elderly can easily participate during their day-to-day lives, our aim was to create opportunities for exercise, which have declined due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 250,916 people participated in the event. We also sponsored the Satsuki Relay Marathon held at Japan National Stadium. In October 2023, we sponsored October Run & Walk. We will continue to strive to create opportunities for consumers to exercise and encourage their participation.
Satsuki Run & Walk, easily participable with a smartphone
Satsuki Relay Marathon
We offer a lineup of small portion sizes in some of our products, such as chocolate and biscuits. By keeping the amount per bag small, customers can choose the amount that best suits their mood.
The Morinaga Group operates a training lab that supports the body building and nutrition counseling for top athletes. We provide articles put together by trainers and dieticians of the Training Lab on our website, “Easy-to-understand textbook on protein.” The website gets an average of 1.5 million visits per month with a multitude of information from protein selection by Purpose of use, to food menu, and workout advice.
As the initiatives for "health of environment", we aim to eliminate waste from society by supplying non-standard products generated during manufacturing at affordable prices without discarding them. We released non-standard Potelong with irregular lengths in FY2022, as well as non-standard MOON LIGHT and Chocolate Chip Cookie with cracking in FY2023 and FY2024, respectively.
We will continue to promote the recycling and effective use of food resources through these initiatives, aiming to contribute to "health of environment".
We are working to realize a world, where everyone can enjoy food, regardless of whether they have a food allergy or not.
In 2023, we launched the "Morinaga Plant Milk Ice Cream Project", and as a result, in March 2024 we launched OKOMETO, our company's first plant-based milk ice cream*1 using rice.
In developing this product, we obtained the opinions of people living with children who have food allergies and who have limited access to ice cream, as well as rice flour food researchers and rice flour snack researchers.
In addition, OKOMETO, which uses domestically produced rice milk and rice flour does not contain 28 allergens such as milk, eggs, soybeans, and animal ingredients*2, has become an ice cream that responds to a wide range of plant-based food needs.
OKOMETO Vanilla
OKOMETO Chocolate
"1 Chocolate for 1 Smile" is an initiative that we have been working on since 2008 to improve the sustainability of chocolate. We use a part of sales of our products to support efforts to improve the educational environment for children who will lead the future of cacao producing countries such as Ghana, to address child labor issues, and to raise the income of cacao farmers. In addition to donations made throughout the year, we also implement customer-participatory support activities in which "actions" such as purchasing products or participating in campaigns lead to donations.
Our support partners are Plan International, an international NGO, and ACE, an NGO born in Japan.
Employees also visit support areas and engage in dialogue with cocoa farmers, adults, and government officials, as well as children of cocoa farmers.
| Content of support | Number |
|---|---|
| Total amount of support | 63% |
| Number of years supporting | 17 years |
| Number of countries, villages and settlements that we provided support | 6 countries, and 183 villages and settlements |
| Number of children that we provided support | 17,503 |
| Number of children of cacao producing countries free from child labor | 627 |
| Number of schools that we provided support | 91 |
| Number of adults who learned about issues such as education and child labor through the project | 7,077 |
Ghanaian children receiving school meals provided by the support
Dialogue between our employees and cocoa farmers
Many of the products of the “in-” business have a high affinity with active scenes such as sports and can be consumed anytime, anywhere on the go. However, we recognize that this is closely
related to the social issue of plastic waste in cities.
Therefore, the “in-” business hopes to contribute to “health of environment” by spreading a new sport called “plogging,” in which people pick up trash while jogging. In March 2023, we held a plogging event with Kuki City, Saitama Prefecture, which has made a declaration to be a city of health, happiness, and sports and with which we have a comprehensive partnership agreement. The event was held in collaboration with Yokohama F. Marinos, with which we concluded a partnership agreement in July with volunteers from Yokohama City’s Tsurumi Ward Office, the ward of which is the location of a manufacturing plant for in Bar Protein, and the Yokohama City Sports Association.
We believe that we can expand the circle of initiatives by collaborating with companies and organizations from different pathways, such as professional sports teams that embody the appeal of sports and have the power to communicate, local governments that are working to improve the health of citizens and create comfortable cities, and our company that provides foods suitable for active scenes.
Plogging is an opportunity for people who enjoy running on a regular basis, as well as people who are not good at sports, to move their bodies, leading to the creation of opportunities for exercise. We also believe that the experience of cleaning up the city while exercising with friends contributes to “health of mind,” such as “feeling connected to others.” By promoting these activities, we will link them not only to “heath of environment” but also to “health of mind” and “health of body.”
Plogging presented by Morinaga in Jelly conducted in Minato-ku Tokyo in October 2023
Plogging event in Kuki City, Saitama
Plogging event held with Yokohama F. Marinos, volunteers of Yokohama City’s Tsurumi Ward Office, and the Yokohama City Sports Association
Plogging presented by Morinaga in Jelly in Minato-ku Tokyo
Plogging with colleagues is fun!
We also engage in corporate citizenship activities such as education for the younger generation.