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Since its founding, Lion has sought to help consumers create healthy living habits through the provision of products and services while carrying out educational and awareness activities and communication aimed for people’s healthy daily lives.
In Japan and other Asian countries, Lion is engaged in initiatives that contribute to the sustainable development of society and the global environment through the areas of health, comfort and cleanliness (see Lion Group Charter for Corporate Behavior.) We believe that our continued business viability depends on co-existing harmoniously with the communities in which we are involved, such as those where Lion facilities are located. We therefore strive to help solve issues in and invigorate local communities by strengthening partnerships with local residents, government agencies and citizens’ groups. In addition, by increasing opportunities for every employee to get involved in business-related educational activities, we foster human resources that create new value informed by a high level of social and environmental awareness.
Lion’s founder, Tomijiro Kobayashi, had close ties to Ishinomaki City. Honoring this connection, Lion has pursued recovery support initiatives in the city on a continuous basis since the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011.
In January 2019, Lion formed a comprehensive collaboration agreement with the city to promote the health of city residents and revitalize the area using its accumulated health improvement expertise. In January 2024, after a long suspension in our activities due to COVID-19, we signed on for the second phase of the comprehensive collaboration agreement and will continue working with Ishinomaki City. We will continue to implement a variety of initiatives based on employee participation.
Since October 2006, in accordance with an agreement with Yamanashi City, Lion has been involved in the maintenance of a city-owned forest, which is called “Lion Forest in Yamanashi” the first of the Company Forest Promotion Projects being promoted by Yamanashi Prefecture. Our goal is to increase employee awareness of the environment through the experience of caring for the forest, which serves as a water source. We set the ambitious goal of the natural restoration of land developed into housing lots in Yamanashi City. Through this activity, we aim to pave the way for the environmental education of the next generation through exploring issues and problem solving. Furthermore, we contribute to local community to gain a better understanding of its needs and further its growth.
The KireiKirei City-Sakaide Project is an initiative implemented through a partnership agreement signed in 2014 by Sakaide City, the Lion Chemical Co., Ltd. Oleochemical Production Site and Lion that aims to improve the health of the citizens of Sakaide City by educating them about healthy habits such as hand washing and tooth brushing.
In 2020, Lion formed an agreement with the municipality of Sumida-ku, where our headquarters were formerly located, to collect and recycle used toothbrushes with the aim of recovering plastic resources.
Between April 2020 and March 2021, used toothbrushes were collected from elementary schools and other organizations (many of which are educational institutions), recycled into rulers, and returned to the collecting organizations.
In March 2023, we concluded an agreement with the municipality of Taito-ku to collaborate and cooperate in the promotion of local residents’ health and to contribute to community development for the realization of a sustainable society and our harmonious coexistence with the community.
We took action in the following eight areas with the aim of enriching the lives of Taito-ku residents.
| Activity Name | Period of Activity | 2023 Results(including some results from 2024) |
|---|---|---|
| Dental Hygiene | November, 2023, January, 2024 |
Considered the theme and training subjects and held once a half year leader training seminars on oral healthcare.
* The venue was set alternately between Taito-ku and Lion. |
| Toothbrush Recycling Program | April, 2023 | Collected used toothbrushes at 48 different locations (collected toothbrushes will be recycled by our designated recycling affiliate and given back to the residents of Taito-ku as useful plastics). Lion spread awareness of the Toothbrush Recycling Program and encouraged participation in the collection of toothbrushes through environmental events. |
| Biodiversity Activities | September, 2023, February 2024 |
Workshops were held on the first floor event space of the Company. (1) “People and Animals ‘Sharing Only One Drop of Water’” (2) Are Plastics Bad? Parents and children participating in these workshops, were asked to consider how to deal with the problems arising from water and plastics and declare the actions they intend to take. |
| Kaji x Kaji Happy Share Project | December, 2023 | A seminar, held at the Gender Equality Promotion Plaza “Habataki21,” to reconsider perceptions regarding the division of gender roles and how the sharing of household chores improves the quality of everyday life. Participating couples were given the opportunity to better understand the concept of sharing housework responsibility through a workshop on “cleaning up after meals” and identifying differences in the assignment of household chores. |
| Okuchikarada Project | September, 2023 | We provided Okuchikarada Project trial kits to Manabibu, a specified nonprofit organization that operates a cafeteria for children as one of its initiatives. Lion employees managed and verified the effectiveness of the oral care program by making sure that children’s awareness of brushing their teeth and their opportunities for communication with each other both increased. |
| Disaster Prevention-Related | September, 2023 | We set up a booth at the Disaster Prevention Festival to raise awareness about the importance of oral care even during a disaster. |
| Tourism-Related | Started April 28, 2023 | Aiming to extend the time people spend in Asakusa and diversifying the locations they visit there, we started a solve-as-you-walk riddle game in 2023. We plan to increase our promotional efforts and expand participants going forward. |
| Rugby-Related | October 2023 – January 2024 | In the Rugby section of the Taito-ku Sports Festival during Sports Day in October, an event that gave participants the opportunity to experience what playing rugby is like was held. Additionally, tag rugby classes were held at elementary schools in Taito-ku until January. |
Since 2014, as part of the Company’s training program, employees go to kindergartens and preschools across Japan to teach children about the importance of hand washing habits through a set of fun song and dance activities. In addition to providing products, our employees play a helpful role in promoting self-directed cleanliness and hygiene habits.
Lion is proactively implementing these activities, which not only serve communities, but contribute to human resource development. By participating in these initiatives, employees learn about social issues through direct contact with communities and improve their problem-solving skills, teamwork skills and empathy in addition to increasing their awareness of the importance of contributing to society.
Since 2019, Lion has been holding events to support “Rico-Challe,” a campaign to support female junior high, high school and university students choosing science, technology, engineering and mathematic (STEM) fields being implemented by the Gender Equality Bureau Cabinet Office, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Education Policy Bureau and the Japan Business Federation.
One example of how Lion supports science education is by conducting experience-based lessons for high school students from Super Science High School designated schools,* helping these students to deepen their knowledge, and by offering tours of the Research and Development Headquarters that cover the history of Lion’s technological development, the motivations of the developers and the technologies used in Lion products in order to foster their interest in science. Because students are able to hear from researchers directly, these events help students develop a sense of what it is like to work in research.
* The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology has implemented the Super Science High School program since 2002 to carry out research and development focused on math and science education with the goal of developing future international scientists and engineers. Under the program, upper secondary schools providing advanced math and science education are designated as Super Science High Schools and receive special support.
Edogawa-ku, where Lion’s Hirai Research Center is located, has been conducting an ongoing science education center project for more than 50 years in which the ward, schools, and local residents collaborate to teach children about the fascinating scientific phenomena happening around them. For more than 15 years, we have been holding science classes for elementary school students to familiarize them with interface science, which is the foundation of Lion’s products, and to help them become familiar with science in their daily lives.
Click here for more research institute activities [Japanese]The Lion Fangs, Lion’s rugby club, celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2022. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the many people who have continued to support us and help us achieve this milestone. We would like to express our sincere gratitude. As part of its sports promotion activities, the company’s rugby club holds the Lion Rugby Festival every year in spring at the Chiba Plant sports field. About 700 members of the community, mostly children from the local rugby school, attend each year. During the festival, currently active rugby players teach rugby skills in an easy to understand way to young aspiring players ranging from kindergarten to upper elementary school students.
In addition, since 2012, as part of Lion’s project to promote recovery from the Great East Japan Earthquake, the rugby club has been holding rugby classes in the city of Ishinomaki, as well. Every year, roughly 100 people attend this event. This year, we will co-sponsor the Taito-ku Rugby Festival organized by the Taito-ku Rugby Association. Through rugby, we will continue to participate in a variety of community and social contribution activities.
RCC Hiroshima Women’s Ekiden (long-distance relay race) [Japanese]
RKK Women’s Ekiden (long-distance relay race) [Japanese]
All Japan Junior Kendo Tournament [Japanese]
Walking Event [Japanese]
Recognized as a Sports Yell Company 2024 by the Japan Sports Agency
Lion was recognized by the Sports Agency as a Sports Yell Company in 2024 for its efforts to promote sports activities among its employees and its active support in the field of sports.
News Release [Japanese]
Lion is promoting the Kaji × Kaji Happy Share Project in partnership with municipalities and companies across Japan with the aim of eliminating the “chore gap” in households. By helping foster smoother relations within households in the communities where we promote this project, we are supporting the resolution of a variety of social issues, such as women’s participation in the labor force and the low birth rate. Through this project, we are working with municipalities to provide useful information not only to married couples, but broadly throughout communities.
Lion considers plant tours to be an important contact point between customers and the Company. So that customers can get to know Lion products and witness the extremely high priority the Company places on safety and environmental conservation in its operations, we welcome many visitors to the plants every year. Plant tours were suspended from February 2020 to prevent the spread of COVID-19 but since 2023, we have been proceeding with the reopening of the program in phases.
| Plant | Chiba | Odawara | Osaka | Akashi | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Participants | 50 | 231 | 126 | 150 | 557 |
Valuing communication with local communities, Lion Group plants and offices proactively engage in cleanup activities not just within their own grounds, but in the surrounding areas, as well.
The Odawara City Kouzu Ward Neighborhood Association holds an annual cleanup of the Kouzu Coast. Lion employees in Odawara have been participating in the cleanup activities since 2003. In 2008, the location of the cleanup was changed to the nearby Sekiguchi River. We have continued participating in the cleanup every year. However, the activity has been suspended since 2020 to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Though the activity was resumed in 2022, it was cancelled in 2023 due to heavy rain.
| 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Participants | 43 | 36 | Suspended | Suspended | 32 | Suspended |
The Lion Chemical Corporation Fine Chemical Production Site has been conducting cleanup activities with employees and local residents on the Kamisu City coastline (Hikawa and Hasaki beaches) every June since 2009 as part of our community contribution activities. Activities were temporarily suspended in 2020 to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and restarted again in 2022.
| 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Participants | 46 | Suspended | Suspended | 20 | 24 |
Lion provides a wide variety of products that support daily living based in significant part on value derived from nature.
In addition to striving to use resources in a sustainable manner, Lion is engaged in biodiversity conservation, aiming for each employee of Lion’s operating sites to proactively contribute to the realization of a society in harmony with nature.
Every year, including its domestic Group companies, Lion surveys the implementation status of social contribution activities to collect and manage data on monetary and product donations for and spending on each activity.
The total amount spent on social contribution activities in fiscal 2023 was approximately ¥559.0 millions.
Fiscal 2023 expenditure on social contribution activities (Millions of yen)
*Monetary donations include donations to the Lion Foundation for Dental Health (LDH) [Japanese]
| 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 519 | 1,041 | 734.0 | 605.9 | 559.0 |
*2021 and 2022 year’s data had errors, which have been corrected in the figures.
| 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5,956 | 1,923 | 1,053 | 2,826 | 3,182 |
*In 2020 and 2021, volunteer hours were decreased to prevent the spread of COVID-19 pandemic.
![Lion Fangs [Japanese]](/ja/sustainability/img/management/contribution/thumb_2024_04.png)
