Development of Eco-Friendly Products

Policy and Approach

In recent years, expectations for reducing the environmental impact of products have been increasing among customers, local communities, governments, and other stakeholders. In this context, Sunstar is developing products to reduce environmental impact from three perspectives.

In all processes from product development to disposal after use, we strive to promote effective use of resources, pollution prevention, and resource circulation from the perspectives of the Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Renewable and Biodiversity Conservation.
We will reduce the environmental impact of our products by adopting the product life cycle assessment method and quantitatively visualizing the magnitude of the impact of our products on the environment.
We will share best practices and issues related to reducing the environmental impact of products and containers development in a timely manner through the global network of our group sites to speed up the development process.

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Eco-friendly plastic products and containers

Reduce

Reduce plastic consumption

De-plasticized design

(Utilization of metal, glass, paper)

Recycle

Use of recycled materials
(Reduction of virgin plastic）
Design for easy recycling
(Monomaterialization and easy disassembly)

Renew

Use of plant-based plastics
(Reduction of oil-based plastics)

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Mid- to Long-Term Environmental Targets and Results

^＊ Scope of data:Data from group-owned global plants is integrated. Electricity, water and CO₂ are counted for the US Oral care plant, and electricity and CO₂ are counted for Tsubamex
Consumer Business ＝ Oral care products, cosmetics, health foods, and other consumer product-related businesses

Industrial Business = Adhesives and sealants for automobiles, construction and electronics, and metal parts for motorcycles and automobiles

^＊ Evaluation criteria: ◎ = Exceeds targets, ○ = Mostly on target, △ = Missed target but making progress, × = Worse than before

^＊1 Includes European procurement for consumer business

^＊2 Product containers and primary packaging materials (excluding subcontracted products for Japanese consumer goods and industrial goods)

^＊3 Recyclable or reusable material = Easily separable by material after product use ）

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“Environmental Data” for details

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Product Examples

Here are just some of the eco-friendly products we have developed.

Ongoing reduction of plastic use in dental rinse bottles, toothpaste tubes, etc.
(Japan, Asia)

Table

Year	Activities	Results
2015	Thinned toothpaste tube	Plastic material reduction 2 tons/year
2016	Expanded SKU for thin toothpaste tube	Plastic material reduction
2017	Expanded SKU for thin toothpaste tube Thinned PET bottle for vegetable juice Adopted paper can package for health drink	Plastic material reduction 8 tons/year Plastic reduction 2 tons/year Paper use 2 tons/year
2018〜2019	Lightened mouthwash bottle Lightened mouthwash cap Expanded drink SKU of paper can package	Plastic material reduction 40 tons/year Plastic material reduction 5 tons/year Paper use 10 tons/year
2020	Lightened mouthwash pump Changed packaging for mouthwash set	Plastic reduction of 27 tons/year Plastic reduction of 9 tons/year
2021	Introduced pump-type mouthwash and replacement bottle set Changed mouthwash sampler Changed POP packaging from plastic to paper	Plastic reduction of 27 tons/year Plastic reduction of 6 tons/year
2022	Reduced weight of cases and toothpaste caps for portable toothbrushing sets	Plastic reduction of 1.8 tons/year
2022	Reduced weight of small mouthwash bottles	Plastic reduction of 22.4 tons/year
2023	Thinned Φ31㎜ toothpaste tube	Plastic reduction of 12.3 tons/year
2024	Discontinued plastic cases for L-type GUM interdental brushes (for the five existing types)	Plastic reduction of 80 tons/year

GUM BIO toothpaste (Europe)

Received COSMOS-ORGANIC certification, a global standard for organic products. It contains 99% of natural ingredients and 22% of ingredients from organic farming. Its packaging box is made with 80% recycled paper and is 100% recyclable.

Use of low environmental impact materials in products and packaging (Japan)

The most of the toothbrush products use toothbrush bristles that contain plant-based plastic and packaging made of recycled plastic and FSC®-certified paper.

Cutting plastic use in half for Large-Capacity Bottles (Japan)

When developing the 1300mL large-volume liquid toothpaste, the plastic of the bottle has been thinned, halving plastic usage per liquid volume of 500mL bottle. The plastic material is plant-based biomass PET (polyethylene terephthalate).

Reduction of package weight, package plastic and package waste for automotive and construction adhesives and sealants (Global)

We are promoting the use of crushable and film-like containers to reduce waste after use.

KENKODOJO Brown Rice & Soy Drink Sesame Plus (Japan)

Adopting a lightweight paper cartonpackage helped reduce CO₂ emissions in transportation.
This health drink is itself an example of waste reduction since it is made of rice bran, which is often discarded during rice polishing.

Commercialization of highly durable and weather-resistant construction sealants (Japan)

We are promoting the use of stain-resistant and long-lasting materials.

Progress in usage of recycled materials in packaging (Europe)

We are continuously expanding our range of products that incorporate recycled packaging, such as recycled PET and paperboard. In 2023, 85% of GUM® Brand net revenue made with products containing 70-80% recycled packaging, and 80% the sales generated with products “Made in Europe” minimizing environmental impact through local sourcing.

Use of less plastic in in-store display units (Europe, Japan)

In Europe and Japan, we are striving to reduce our environmental impact by using as little plastic as possible in our in-store display units for toothbrushes and interdental cleaners, and instead using recyclable paper and wood materials. In Japan, we reduce environmental impact by blending paper powder, plant-based biodegradable plastic, and recycled plastic into the plastic parts of our store display units. In addition, we strive to reduce waste by recycling our core materials and only replacing whenever contents must be updated.

Adoption of plant-based plastics for mouthwash bottles (Japan, Asia)

Since July 2023, we have progressively switched from petroleum-based plastics to plant-based biomass PET (polyethylene terephthalate) for 16 mouthwash bottles produced in Japan. CO₂ emissions reduced by 270 tons per year.

Use of recyclable containers for shipping adhesives and metal parts (Global)

In an effort to reduce our environmental impact, we use reusable drums to ship automotive adhesives and construction sealants to business partners and we have switched from drums to jumbo tanks to reduce the frequency of shipping. We also use returnable boxes and recyclable metal baskets to ship metal parts for motorcycles.

Development of low environmental impact motorbike racing brake components (Japan)

Sunstar has cut in half the CO₂ emissions by optimizing the racing brake disks’ production process and developing more sustainable racing brake pads, which emit about 15% fewer fine particles in use. These components achieved positive results in live races, and Sunstar has now made the decision to commercialize them.