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Lion embraces its purpose— “Make a difference in everyday lives by redesigning habits (ReDesign)”—and puts it into practice in its daily operations. As part of our social contribution activities, we have made it our mission to support the daily lives of every individual through the creation of better living habits and to continue working toward the realization of a sustainable society.
Through our social contribution activities, we work alongside our stakeholders to address the challenges not only Japan but also the broader Asian community are facing. By developing products and services that create new social value, we aim to promote mental and physical healthcare and contribute to a healthy global environment.
Lion founder Tomijiro Kobayashi was driven by a desire to contribute to society through business. At T. Kobayashi & Co., the predecessor to Lion Corporation, he introduced charity coupons printed on packets of Lion Toothpowder with a portion of the proceeds being donated to charitable organizations. This was a groundbreaking philanthropic initiative for the time.
This desire to contribute to society has been passed down through the years, eventually evolving into the Lion Corporate Philosophy’s core principle of “Fulfilling a Spirit of Love,” a legacy that continues to this day.
Today, Lion’s business extends beyond simply providing products and services that promote consumers’ health, comfort, and cleanliness. We also dedicate significant effort to carrying out educational and awareness activities and communication aimed at improving people’s lives and contributing to society.
We have positioned “creating healthy living habits,” “creating environmentally friendly habits,” “educating and nurturing the next generation” and “disaster preparedness” as priority areas for our social contribution activities. In pursuing these initiatives, we collaborate with a wide range of stakeholders, including local governments, while leveraging our expertise and resources in creating better living habits.
| Social contribution activities | Associated Stakeholders (in no particular order) |
|---|---|
Priority Areas
Other initiatives
|
◆Government and governing bodies of local municipalities (Okinawa Prefecture, Ishinomaki City, Taito-ku, Sakaide City, Sumida-ku, Akashi City, Yokohama City) ◆Nonprofit organizations
◆Local Communities
◆Business Partners ◆Employees |
We are engaged in social contribution activities aimed at creating healthy living habits, focusing primarily on two key areas: oral healthcare and cleanliness/hygiene.
With the goal of further establishing good oral healthcare and hygiene habits in Japan and across Asia, we conduct awareness and educational campaigns to create healthy living habits. We do this by addressing the specific challenges of local communities, focusing on the daily lives of children and consumers, and collaborating with a diverse range of stakeholders. Additionally, we actively engage in public relations activities to raise broad awareness of these initiatives and accelerate changes in societal attitudes and behaviors.
Since 2021, Lion has pursued “Inclusive Oral Care” with the goal of creating a society that provides oral healthcare to everyone, leaving no one behind. As part of this initiative, we have launched the Okuchikarada Project, which supports the mental and physical healthcare of children by helping them establish good oral healthcare habits.
Through the Okuchikarada Project, we collaborate with organizations such as the Certified NPO Nationwide Children’s Cafeteria Center Musubie and groups in Okinawa Prefecture that create safe spaces for children, with the goal of nurturing children’s self-esteem. Our main initiatives include the nationwide distribution of hands-on learning program kits for children’s cafeterias and safe spaces (such as picture-story shows about brushing teeth, craft activities, card games, and toothbrushing calendars); facilitating interactions between children and employees through employee training; and conducting awareness-raising PR campaigns in collaboration with other companies.
In Okinawa Prefecture, we are also addressing region-specific challenges and working to promote oral healthcare habits rooted in specific communities through diverse initiatives such as providing hands-on learning opportunities for children, conducting awareness campaigns at certified kindergartens and nursery schools, and offering support to young pregnant women and new mothers.
Lion aims to support the establishment of good hygiene habits among children and their parents, as well as to assist teachers in promoting these habits in educational settings, through its efforts to raise awareness about handwashing and hand sanitization.
In kindergartens and elementary schools, we conduct hands-on workshops where children decorate their own bottles using our KireiKirei Foaming Hand Soap, as well as experiments exploring the properties of foam. Through these activities, we help children develop both the awareness and habit of washing their hands for the sake of their families and loved ones, while also supporting parents and teachers in promoting handwashing.
As part of our social contribution activities aimed at creating environmentally friendly habits, we focus on two pillars from the perspective of resource circulation: water conservation habits and plastic waste reduction habits. By reducing water usage and plastic consumption in Japan and Asia, and by promoting resource circulation, we aim to contribute to the reduction of CO2 emissions and help establish habits that lead to a sustainable global environment.
As a company that handles many products closely related to water—such as toothpastes, hand soaps, laundry detergents and dishwashing liquids—we consider water conservation to be an important corporate responsibility and are committed to promoting good water-saving habits.
We provide educational materials designed for elementary school environmental studies, titled the “Water-Saving Eco Habits Challenge,” with the goal of cultivating an awareness of water conservation from the earliest stages of a child’s education. The program helps students learn about the water-saving benefits of reducing the number of rinse cycles while doing laundry and encourages them to think about environmentally friendly actions they can take in their daily lives.
To foster a culture of water conservation, we invite children from the area surrounding our headquarters to our office and, in collaboration with the Taito City Environmental Education Center, host fun workshops where they learn about local river wildlife and aquatic environments, how water is purified, and water-saving practices they can adopt in their daily lives.
As a company that handles a wide variety of plastic-based containers and packaging, such as bottles and pouches, we are committed to promoting practices that prevent plastic waste in order to help realize a resource-circulating society.
We conduct SDGs-focused lessons in junior high and high schools to raise awareness of resource recycling among students, covering environmental issues related to plastic as well as such initiatives as our toothbrush recycling and refill pack/pouch recycling programs.
We encourage people of all ages, from young children to seniors, to develop habits that minimize plastic waste by offering hands-on upcycling arts and craft activities—such as creating kaleidoscopes using plastic pieces from recycled toothbrushes—that make resource recycling an accessible and enjoyable experience, as well as distributing our sustainability communication booklet, “Foundation of Daily Life: In Numbers.”
We engage in a variety of activities—such as inquiry-based learning and career experiences in collaboration with schools and local communities—with the aim of shaping the habits of the next generation and building relationships with future generations. Through workshops focused on our business and social issues, as well as dialogue with our employees, we provide children and young people with opportunities to proactively consider how to develop better living habits and shape their careers, thereby supporting the development of the next generation and their participation in building a sustainable society.
Taking advantage of our headquarters’ location in a tourist area, we host corporate visits and field trips for school excursions and conduct classes centered on the SDGs.
In collaboration with the Taito-ku Office in Tokyo and travel agencies, we offer lessons, idea workshops, and hands-on craft activities for junior high and high school students. These programs, designed to support inquiry-based learning, focus on such themes as creating good oral healthcare habits and creating environmentally friendly habits, thereby providing students with opportunities to learn about the connections between social issues and their own actions.
We offer on-site lectures at local elementary schools and participate in corporate events such as family days, providing hands-on craft activities where families can enjoyably learn about oral healthcare, handwashing and environmental issues. In addition, we provide online learning content for junior high and high school students, accessible from school or home, thereby expanding learning opportunities regardless of location.
Starting in 2026, we plan to participate in the Tokyo Metropolitan Government’s “Children’s Smile Movement” initiative and implement career experience programs for junior high and high school students.
In addition to providing hands-on experience with social contribution activities, such as promoting toothbrushing and handwashing in kindergartens, we will offer opportunities for students to plan and propose initiatives that address social issues, thereby creating opportunities for the next generation to reflect on their careers and participation in society.
In times of disaster, poor sanitation and water shortages can make it difficult to maintain personal hygiene, making cleanliness and hygiene even more critical. In particular, oral health is closely linked to overall health; inadequate oral healthcare not only increases the risk of dental problems such as cavities and gum disease but also raises the risk of infections, including aspiration pneumonia.
With this in mind, Lion strives to raise awareness of hygiene and healthcare practices during disaster prevention and emergency situations and promotes the creation of habits that encourage preparedness not only during disasters but also in everyday life.
We provide “Disaster Preparedness Hygiene Kits” that encourage people to stock their emergency kits with oral healthcare items such as toothbrushes and other hygiene supplies while raising awareness of the “rolling stockpile” practice—where items are used regularly and replaced periodically to maintain a constant, up-to-date supply.
We have created and distribute a booklet titled “Hygiene and Health Care in Times of Disaster,” which presents a compilation of information on oral healthcare during water shortages and precautions for hygiene and healthcare during evacuation, providing practical guidance for use in the event of a disaster.
We actively participate in disaster prevention events and related activities across the country, using hands-on exhibits and explanations to raise awareness about the importance of hygiene and healthcare during disasters, as well as specific care methods.
Lion collaborates with local governments and municipalities in regions with which it has historical ties or where its facilities are located to promote such key initiatives as “creating healthy living habits” and “creating environmentally friendly habits.” Working together with a diverse range of local stakeholders, the Company carries out social contribution activities rooted in the specific challenges of each region.
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 of activities due to COVID-19, we signed on for the second phase of the comprehensive collaboration agreement and have continued working with Ishinomaki City. In addition, we will continue to implement a variety of initiatives based on employee participation.
In March 2023, we concluded an agreement with the municipality of Taito-ku upon the relocation of our headquarters. To address local issues, such as those related to health and the environment, the agreement promotes collaboration in seven key areas: (1) measures promoting health and dental health; (2) environmental measures and product recycling; (3) promotion of a gender-equal society; (4) sound upbringing of children and youth; (5) disaster prevention measures; (6) tourism promotion and (7) promotion of sports. This agreement was forged with the aim of collaborating and cooperating in the promotion of local residents’ health and contributing to fostering community harmony and the realization of a sustainable society.
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 handwashing and oral healthcare. We are also engaged in toothbrush recycling, collecting used toothbrushes at facilities and schools throughout the city.
In February 2026, we signed our fourth partnership agreement, and we are continuing and expanding our activities through mutual cooperation, building on our achievements to date.
Through the Okuchikarada Project, an Inclusive Oral Care initiative, we have been conducting a collaborative study involving industry, government, and academia from 2022 to 2025 to evaluate the program's effectiveness in Okinawa Prefecture, where high rates of childhood tooth decay and low self-esteem are major concerns. Building on these efforts, we signed a comprehensive partnership agreement regarding diverse experiences for children with Okinawa Prefecture in 2026. With the goal of realizing Okinawa Prefecture’s vision of a “child-centered society,” we are promoting initiatives that ensure no one is left behind, aiming to foster life skills and instill good habits in children through the hands-on learning opportunities created by both parties.
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.
Used toothbrushes collected within the ward are recycled into rulers and other items for use in schools and educational institutions, serving as thank-you gifts for participating elementary schools and as tools for awareness-raising activities. Through these initiatives, we are working in partnership with the local community to contribute to the creation of a resource-circulating society and aim to establish habits that prevent plastic waste.
As a company that utilizes chemical raw materials, we are engaged in biodiversity conservation activities aimed at protecting ecosystems and preserving the local environment by preventing chemical pollution. We are undertaking initiatives to protect such species as the loggerhead sea turtle, which is listed on the Ministry of the Environment’s Red List and the IUCN Red List.
With the aim of fostering community service and promoting communication with local residents, we organize cleanup activities in the neighborhoods surrounding our facilities and host plant tours. In addition to beautifying the local environment through these cleanup activities, our plant tours provide an opportunity to showcase our manufacturing processes and our environmental and safety initiatives, thereby promoting understanding of our corporate activities and building trust with the local community.
Lion manages the Lion Fangs rugby club, which competes in the Top East League, and is engaged in activities that contribute to people’s physical and mental well-being through the promotion of sports. Through such initiatives as tag rugby clinics for local children and community festivals that bring club players and residents together, the Company promotes the joy of sports and the importance of physical and mental health, fostering activities deeply rooted in the local community.
Every year, Lion and its domestic Group companies, conduct surveys to assess the results of their social contribution activities in addition to compiling and managing donations and other contributions. The total amount donated fiscal 2025 was approximately ¥299.9 million. Going forward, we will continue our efforts in the form of monetary and in-kind donations, as well as sponsorship activities.
![KireiKirei City-Sakaide Project [Japanese]](/ja/sustainability/img/social-contribution/thumb_2026_03.jpg)
![Lion Fangs [Japanese]](/ja/sustainability/img/social-contribution/thumb_2025_01.jpg)