Mitsui Chemicals Establishes New Climate Change/Plastics Strategy Department Within the Corporate Sustainability Division
2020.06.01
Mitsui Chemicals, Inc.
Mitsui Chemicals, Inc. (Tokyo: 4183; President & CEO: HASHIMOTO Osamu) is to establish a new Climate Change/Plastics Strategy Department within the Corporate Sustainability Division on June 15.
Objectives of Establishing the Climate Change/Plastics Strategy Department
- To speed up implementation of the climate change policy and plastics strategies*1
- To gather and analyze information about the circular economy and other aspects of corporate sustainability across the globe and to reflect this information in company-wide strategies
- To enhance information disclosure, including responses to the TCFD*2
As a chemicals provider whose mainstay products and services involve plastics, the Mitsui Chemicals Group regards the twin problems of climate change and plastic waste as key social issues that must be tackled in earnest. Through the establishment of this new organization, Mitsui Chemicals intends to contribute to creating a circular economy by stepping up initiatives that treat climate change response and plastics strategies as two halves of the same whole.
Mitsui Chemicals’ Corporate Sustainability Initiatives
Having established a Corporate Sustainability Division in April 2018, Mitsui Chemicals is actively incorporating elements of sustainability into its management and strategies, pursuing a transformation of its business model to realize a cohesive society that is in harmony with the environment and health and happiness in an aging society. In 2019, the company announced its support for the TCFD’s recommendations, joined the AEPW*3 and announced its climate change policy and plastics strategies.
In addition to stepping up its climate change response and plastics strategies, Mitsui Chemicals aims to become a sustainable corporate group with a global presence by strengthening its ability to create social value through its business activities. Foremost among these will be its efforts to expand the delivery of Blue Value™*4 products and services, which come in aim of contributing to the environment, and Rose Value™*4 products and services, which serve to improve quality of life (QOL).
References
*1Climate change policy and plastics strategies
*2TCFD: Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures
Established by the Financial Stability Board to develop climate-related financial risk disclosures.
*3AEPW: Alliance to End Plastic Waste
An initiative involving global companies engaged in the plastics value chain, including the chemical manufacturing, plastics processing, retail and waste management sectors.
*4Blue Value™ and Rose Value™
Yardsticks used to help visualize the contributions that Mitsui Chemicals Group’s products and services make to the environment and society and enable the Group to share those values with stakeholders. Mitsui Chemicals uses these distinctive yardsticks to evaluate its products and services according to application. Those that make significant contributions to the environment are certified as Blue Value™ products, while those which substantially enhance QOL are certified as Rose Value™ products.