Material Issue 3 Realize decarbonization, circular economy, and society in harmony with nature, through environmental efforts

Environmental Management

Seven & i Group is actively working to reduce its environmental impact in order to contribute to the creation of a sustainable society and leave a prosperous planet to future generations. In May 2019, we announced the “GREEN CHALLENGE 2050” environmental declaration, which sets out our vision for society and our goals for 2030 and 2050.

We are moving ahead with environmental initiatives by way of the Seven & i Holdings Environment Subcommittee, which is attended by the supervisors of the Environment Divisions at our Group companies, as well as through our Innovation Teams established for the purpose of implementing initiatives falling under the environmental declaration “GREEN CHALLENGE 2050.” In addition, each Group company has established an environmental management system appropriate to its line of business.

  • SDGs13 CLIMATE ACTION

Promotion Framework

Seven & i Group CSR Management Committee meets twice a year. The Committee, chaired by our company President, is attended by CSR managers from the Group companies—who serve as those companies' President and Representative Directors—and managers of their CSR promotion divisions, as well as managers from divisions from Seven & I Holdings engaged in work related to CSR promotion. The CSR Management Committee has established an Environment Subcommittee as a subordinate organization to deal with climate change issues. It consists of managers from the environmental departments of the Group companies.

In addition, when we announced the environmental declaration “GREEN CHALLENGE 2050”in May 2019, we established the Environmental Innovation Team, the goal of which is to alleviate environmental load working from four different perspectives, including CO2 emission reduction and plastic reduction strategies. This is a company-wide initiative. The CSR Management Committee receives reports on trends in indicators and on initiatives mainly for mitigation measures. The Committee approves measures implemented by the subcommittees and each Group company, and provides any necessary advice. Progress reports on these initiatives are submitted to the Board of Directors of Seven & i Holdings at least twice a year, at which time policies and initiatives are reviewed as necessary.

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Environmental Management System

With a view to boosting the effectiveness of Group-wide environmental management, the Seven & i Group is putting forth initiatives to acquire the ISO14001 international standard in environmental management. By way of regular internal audits, which include observation, assessment, and analysis, environmental management systems are evaluated with a view to ascertaining the efficiency of improvement initiatives. We also conduct reviews of management personnel in order to ensure smooth implementation of improvement initiatives. Additionally, Seven-Eleven Japan is taking steps to acquire the Ministry of the Environment’s Eco Action 21 certification at dedicated factories, working together with the Nihon Delica Foods Association (NDF).

ISO 14001 Acquisition

Seven & i Group strives to maximize the effectiveness of its environmental management strategies. To this end, we are moving ahead with steps to acquire the international-standard ISO 14001 Sogo & Seibu became the first in the department store sector to achieve ISO 14001 certification in 1999, and has successfully maintained it continuously at all business sites. Subsequently, Seven-Eleven Japan acquired certification at the end of February 2015 for its offices and directly-managed stores throughout Japan. Meanwhile, Seven & i Food Systems attained certification in February 2015 for its Head Office and some Denny’s restaurants. All in all, the Group companies achieving certification are carrying out initiatives to reduce environmental footprint, working through the ISO 14001 certification framework. They also conduct annual environmental audits to ascertain both the appropriateness and effectiveness of the management system. The sales ratio of the operating companies that have obtained ISO 14001 certification is approximately 30% of the Group's net sales.

Eco Action 21 Certification Acquired

In collaboration with the Nihon Delica Foods Association (NDF), Seven-Eleven Japan conducts information sharing on examples of initiatives that have substantial energy-saving effects at biannual NDF nationwide CSR promotion conferences. Seven-Eleven Japan also confirms the need to create a system that can respond to a variety of environmental issues including compliance, energy-saving measures, reducing CO2 emissions, and reducing food loss and waste. Based on the results confirmed above, Seven-Eleven Japan has declared that it will utilize an environmental management system, and with regard to the acquisition of Eco Action 21, established by the Ministry of the Environment, it is taking proactive measures such as holding briefings. Of the 176 factories that manufacture daily products, 152 factories have achieved environmental management certification with a focus on Eco Action 21 (as of the end of February 2023).

Third-Party Audit of CO2 Emissions

To correctly assess and verify the initiatives taken to reduce environmental impact, each year since 2015, Seven & i Group has undergone third-party audits of CO2 emissions from store operations. In 2022, audits of 12 companies*1 were conducted. The sales of the 12 companies covered about 98% of the Group’s total sales. The CO2 emissions from store operations of the 12 companies in the fiscal year ended February 28, 2023 were 114,083 tons for Scope 1, and 2,571,802 tons for Scope 2. Moreover, by undergoing a third-party audit of the data for the Category 1*2 emissions of Seven-Eleven Japan, which accounted for about half (10,059,315 tons) of the Scope 3 emissions, we improved the accuracy and reliability of the quantitative data internally and externally.

  • *1
  • The 12 companies are: Seven & i Holdings, Seven-Eleven Japan, 7- Eleven, Inc., Ito-Yokado, York-Benimaru, York, SHELL GARDEN, IY Foods, Akachan Honpo, THE LOFT, Seven & i Food Systems, and Seven Bank
  • *2
  • The CO2 emissions associated with “purchased products and services” (procurement of raw materials, outsourcing of packaging, procurement of consumables, etc.) from among the 15 categories of Scope 3.

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Third-Party Verification Report

Management of Water

At each store of Seven & i Group, in addition to the daily efforts made to conserve water, water-conserving faucets and energy-saving flushing toilets are also being introduced. Furthermore, through utilizing rainwater and so forth, we are working to reduce the volumes of water used. In the fiscal year ended February 28, 2023, water usage in conjunction with store operation was reduced to 19,424,000 m3*, and water consumption per million yen in sales decreased as in the previous fiscal year.

Additionally, treatment of wastewater from store locations is similarly managed by each of the Group companies in an environmentally friendly manner. By strictly observing national laws as well as the municipal laws and ordinances of the areas in which the stores are located, and by implementing appropriate wastewater treatment and purification for the specific region, we take the necessary steps to prevent contaminated water from flowing into ocean or river waters.

  • *
  • Eight companies included: Seven-Eleven Japan, Ito-Yokado, York-Benimaru, York, SHELL GARDEN, Akachan Honpo, THE LOFT, and Seven & i Food Systems
FY2018 FY2019 FY2020 FY2021 FY2022

Water consumption(1,000㎡)

24,809 23,606 20,537 20,893  19,424 

Water consumption

per million yen in sales

(㎥/million yen)

3.3

3.1

2.9

2.9 

2.9 


Management of CFCs

At Seven & i Group’s stores, devices using CFCs are replaced with ones using CFC alternatives during remodeling and so forth. Moreover, in compliance with the Act on the Protection of the Ozone Layer Through the Control of Specified Substances and Other Measures, which was implemented in April 2015, devices undergo regular inspections and leakage assessments required by the government. Devices using CFCs are disposed of by professional companies in compliance with the law, and stores receive collection certificates from these contractors as proof of appropriate disposal. Substitute CFCs include HCFC (hydro chlorofluorocarbon), production of which is to be banned in developed countries by 2020. As this will require a changeover to another type of substitute, we also plan to further promote the introduction of non-CFC devices in freezing and refrigeration devices used at our stores. At Seven-Eleven Japan, refrigeration devices that utilize CO2 refrigerants have been introduced on at 769 stores (267 stores for frozen refrigeration facilities and 502 stores for only nutritional drink cases or chilled cases that sit in the center of the store), and we are also trialing them at 4 Ito-Yokado stores (as of the end of February 2023).

Management of PCBs

Ito-Yokado has a dedicated storage facility in Kasukabe City, Saitama Prefecture, in order to properly store PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyl) that affects soil and organisms. Fluorescent lamp ballasts and other equipment that contain PCBs are collectively managed there. In the future, Ito-Yokado plans to complete the disposal as soon as it becomes possible for a waste disposal facility to accept them.

FY 2017 FY 2018 FY 2019

Ito-Yokado

Weight of equipment to be disposed of

(containing PCBs)(t)

1.75

1.75

1.75


Management of Paper

At 7-Eleven stores, Seven-Eleven Japan is making progress toward going paperless for accounting forms and has been expanding this effort to all stores since June 2019. This initiative has allowed it to reduce the amount of paper used annually at each store by approx. 3,000 sheets, which helps to reduce the negative impact on the environment (as of the end of February 2023).

Initiatives for Material Issue 3