Kirin

Stakeholder engagement
Kirin Holdings discloses the channels it uses to engage with its stakeholder groups and how its stakeholder engagement activities impact its sustainability strategy.

Sustainability strategy and accountability
Kirin Holdings discloses its process for identifying and prioritising its most relevant sustainability impacts as well as the outcome of this process, in relation to its sustainability strategy. Also, it has group-wide targets on key sustainability topics for the most material parts of its value chain and reports consistently against all its targets.

Ecosystem conversion and restoration
Kirin Holdings actively discloses certain activities aimed at minimizing the conversion of ecosystems.

GHG emissions
Kirin Holdings has set time-bound targets to reduce its scope 1, 2 and 3 greenhouse gas emissions as well as report progress against them. It also discloses that it commits to reducing the total of scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 50% and the scope 3 GHG emissions by 30% compared with 2019 by 2030. Additionally, Kirin Holdings reduces its scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions and its targets are aligned with a 1.5-degree trajectory.

Key areas and species
Kirin Holdings has a strategy regarding the conservation of species impacted by its own operations and value chain, aiming for a net-positive impact on threatened species.

Resource exploitation and circularity performance
Kirin Holdings discloses activities to improve soil health or agrobiodiversity in its production or sourcing practices.

Solid and air pollution
Kirin Holdings reports regularly on air quality parameters of emissions of harmful air pollutants. It also discloses efforts to reduce single-use plastic and use recycled plastic content in its bottles, and provides quantitative data on the proportion of recycled plastic.

Water
Kirin Holdings discloses its processes for managing and monitoring discharge water quality. The company also reports on the volume of water withdrawn for its operations in water-stressed areas. Moreover, Kirin Holdings has introduced anaerobic treatment facilities to purify the wastewater from its production process. The company demonstrates efforts to reduce water withdrawal in its operations and collaborates with its business relationships to improve practices related to access to water and sanitation.

No leading practices were identified for the company in the social inclusion and community impact area.

Act ethically
The company discloses its global tax strategy to the public and emphasises the Chief Financial Officer’s (CFO) role in overseeing the company’s tax corporate governance, tax risk management, and material tax risk. In its contracts with direct business relationships, anti-bribery and anti-corruption clauses are consistently included.

Provide and promote decent work
A publicly available policy statement from the company underscores its dedication to worker health and safety, revealing that 55% of its total direct operations workforce benefits from collective bargaining agreements. In tandem with this, the company expects its business partners to uphold worker health and safety and champions sustainable procurement guided by its sustainable supplier code. Audits, both internal and external, monitor supplier compliance with this code through regular questionnaires and evaluations. On the topic of gender equality, the company provides data on female representation in its workforce and, as a WEP (Women’s Empowerment Principles) signatory, publicises its support for gender equality and women’s empowerment. A set objective aims to boost the number of women in leadership roles to 30% by 2030.

Respect human rights
With a public declaration in its policy statement, the company affirms its commitment to the ILO core labour rights and expects its suppliers to do the same. Human rights due diligence is conducted in alignment with the UN-endorsed Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The company refers to international human rights and labour standards and enlists third-party expertise to pinpoint human rights concerns. Targeted human rights impact assessments are undertaken, as evidenced by the company’s assessments in its Laos coffee and China soybean supply chains. Procedures such as an age verification system during hiring processes have been established, as revealed in the company’s 2022 China soybean supply chain human rights impact assessment, to combat child labour. The company is transparent about crucial human rights issues like working hours, compensation, and occupational health and safety, and offers avenues for employee feedback on health, safety, and environmental matters.

Lobbying
Kirin Holdings does not report on its lobbying and advocacy practices on nature-related issues, nor whether these activities align with its sustainability strategy.

Stakeholder engagement
Kirin Holdings has an opportunity to disclose an overview of the issues raised during its stakeholder engagement activities.

Sustainability strategy and accountability
Kirin Holdings has an opportunity to link performance criteria in senior executives’ remuneration policies to targets and objectives which cover nature, including biodiversity, and social issues. Also, while it states that the board of directors has expertise in ESG, it could disclose whether its highest governance body has expertise with respect to the company’s most material sustainability topics.

Ecosystem conversion and restoration
No evidence was found regarding Kirin Holdings’ efforts to avoid ecosystem conversion, including deforestation, or promote restoration. The company has an opportunity to develop a strategy and publicly report on specific, time-bound targets.

Impact and dependencies assessment
While Kirin Holdings discloses plans to use the LEAP framework for assessing nature-related risks and opportunities, it has an opportunity to clarify the focus and disclose the results of this process. Although the company mentions its dependencies on natural capital and has conducted surveys in this area, it still needs to assess and disclose its dependencies on nature within its own operations. Additionally, the company has yet to disclose assessments of nature-related dependencies in its upstream business relationships.

Invasive species
Kirin Holdings has not identified any activities that could lead to the introduction of invasive alien species in its own operations.

Key areas and species
While Kirin Holdings has disclosed findings from ecological surveys at specific vineyards, including information on rare species and local ecosystems, it has an opportunity to expand its disclosure to all species in and adjacent to its locations, aligned with national and international conservation lists. Furthermore, the company can disclose locations that are important for biodiversity within its own operations as well as locations related to its suppliers.

Resource exploitation and circularity performance
Kirin Holdings has an opportunity to disclose all its inputs according to an international standard. Additionally, while reporting on its material balance, it can use that information to calculate its group-wide circularity performance, such as circular material productivity. Moreover, the company can also disclose a target for enhancing soil health in its production or sourcing practices and regularly report on the progress made towards achieving it.

Solid and air pollution
While Kirin Holdings describes its activities to reduce plastic use and transition towards sustainable packaging, it has an opportunity to disclose the associated quantitative data.

Water
Kirin Holdings does not disclose relevant information related to water, in its operations or supply chains.

Indigenous Peoples’ and land rights
Kirin Holdings does not show if it is committed to respecting Indigenous Peoples’ rights or land rights of local communities.

Safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment
Kirin Holdings has an opportunity to commit to respecting local communities’ right to a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment, and to zero tolerance for acts of violence, threats, intimidation or judicial harassment committed against land and environmental rights defenders. Moreover, it should track its actual or potential negative impacts on the health of local communities.

Act ethically
While Kirin Holdings prohibits bribery and corruption, it has an opportunity to formalise this commitment in a public policy document. Additionally, although the company states that it monitors non-compliance with anti-bribery measures, it should also outline the process it uses to identify specific bribery and corruption risks and their impact on different locations or activities within its own operations.
Currently, Kirin Holdings has a mechanism in place for stakeholders to report bribery and corruption concerns. However, it is unclear whether this mechanism is accessible to all stakeholders, and whether complainants have the option to remain anonymous or identify themselves. Clarifying these details would enhance transparency and accountability.
Another area for improvement is Kirin Holdings’ approach to lobbying and political engagement. Although the company states that political contributions require prior approval in line with internal rules, it could go further by specifying whether such contributions are only made in exceptional cases and describe the criteria for making them. Moreover, disclosing the company’s expenditures on lobbying activities would provide greater insight into its engagement in political matters. Furthermore, it would be beneficial for the company to outline a policy that requires third-party lobbyists to adhere to its own lobbying and political engagement guidelines.

Provide and promote decent work
Kirin Holdings currently states that it pays its employees minimum wage, but it can take steps to commit to paying a living wage by establishing a specific time frame. Additionally, the company has an opportunity to be transparent about how it determines what constitutes a living wage in the areas where it operates. While the company has already set certain expectations regarding the wages paid by its suppliers, it can further enhance its practices by requiring them to pay a living wage. It should also disclose the measures it takes to support suppliers in meeting this requirement.
Regarding Kirin Holdings’ board of directors, the current report indicates that out of a total of 17 members, only 4 are female, resulting in a ratio of 23.5%. To promote gender diversity, the company could disclose its commitment to having at least 30% women representation on the board. Furthermore, the company has the opportunity to provide information on the ratio of basic salary and overall compensation between women and men in its workforce.

Respect human rights
Kirin Holdings states that it performs human rights risk assessments and has processes in place to prevent, mitigate, or address its significant human rights concerns. However, it should provide more comprehensive details about the assessment process and also disclose how this system applies to its supply chain.