Waste Management

Basic Approach

Since the creation of the MUJI brand in 1980, Ryohin Keikaku has consistently approached manufacturing from three perspectives: selection of materials, streamlining of processes and simplification of packaging. The Group believes that selecting materials in consideration of the global environment and producers, eliminating waste in all processes, and providing customers with only what they really need in the way they really need it, leads to waste reduction and a lighter environmental impact on the planet.
The Ryohin Keikaku Group promotes the efficient use of resources and the reduction of waste in processes ranging from raw material procurement and manufacturing to marketing and post-sales. We actively promote activities such as reducing, reusing, repairing and recycling materials from the standpoint of the Ryohin Keikaku Group, the supply chain and customers, aiming to reduce the environmental impact of products and materials throughout the entire lifecycle.

Goals

The Ryohin Keikaku Group aims to contribute to solving issues in society through its businesses.
The Group collects used products, packaging materials and display materials, with the goal of collecting more than the year before.

Management System

The Ryohin Keikaku Group manages and promotes these initiatives in accordance with its environmental management system.

Data on Waste Management

Risks and Challenges

We analyze waste-related risks and challenges primarily from three perspectives: product planning, the supply chain and society/community.
Reducing waste is an ongoing challenge for us, including how we deal with waste from stores, facilities, logistics centers, production processes and packaging materials.
We recognize that in society, the increase in waste contributes to greenhouse gas emissions and an urgent need for final disposal sites. This is a critical issue for the sustainability of not just our own businesses, but for the whole planet, and addressing it is a social responsibility of all companies that manufacture and sell products.

Initiatives

Collection of used products, packaging materials and display materials at stores

The Ryohin Keikaku Group collects from customers certain products that are no longer needed, as well as product-related store display materials, and reuses and recycles those materials, giving them new life.

Initiatives for shopping bags

Our stores in Japan have abolished the distribution of shopping bags made from virgin plastic and have switched to paper bags. We have also expanded the range of reusable My Bags for shopping, and encourage customers to use them. To promote the use of My Bags in Japan, we grant MUJI Good Program points to customers who decline shopping bags when purchasing products.

Waste Management at Business Sites

The Ryohin Keikaku Group is working to reduce the amount of waste generated from business sites, including the stores we manage, distribution bases and offices. Wherever possible, we try to reuse cardboard and plastic materials used when shipping products from factories to stores, and facilitate recycling in each region.

Recycling Scraps Generated in the Production Process

Based on its three perspectives on product development, the Ryohin Keikaku Group’s longstanding approach is to eliminate wastefulness in the selection of materials. Material ends and other scraps generated when producing products, which would normally be discarded, are instead recycled as new materials, thereby reducing waste in the production process.
For example, in making wool products, scraps are inevitably generated during cutting and other processes. Rather than discarding the scraps, we collect and reuse them. Waste is a major issue in the apparel supply chain. By using leftover yarn and cloth from the manufacturing process of our production partners for recycled wool and other products, we are constantly reducing waste.

Food drives

To reduce food loss, MUJI stores conduct food drives in partnership with the local government in the area. Excess food from households that is approaching the expiration date is collected at stores and through food banks is provided to those who need it, such as local welfare organizations and other facilities.
With MUJI stores taking the lead, the food drives are conducted at multiple stores throughout Japan. We will continue to actively work with governments and local communities to address various social issues.

Water bottle and water refilling services

As part of our efforts to reduce plastic waste, from July 2020 we started installing water refill stations in MUJI stores and began offering an in-store water supply service.
Tap water is used for the drinking water in these water refill stations. Anyone can bring their own bottles and easily fill them up instead of buying new bottled beverages. We have installed water refill stations in our stores, making it easy for customers to refill their water bottles when they come to the store. In this way, we are advocating not just for the environment, but also for people’s own health.

We also sell bottles that can be refilled with water repeatedly. In addition to using the water refill stations in MUJI stores, we aim to make the act of using refill bottles a daily habit (without the use of new plastic bottles) in homes and offices. We have also started collecting unneeded self-service water bottles at our stores. We encourage customers to use their bottles repeatedly, but if they need a replacement or if a bottle is damaged, they can bring it to their local MUJI store. By recycling the collected bottles into polyester materials, we can reduce plastic waste and effectively utilize petroleum-derived raw materials.

Compliance with the Containers and Packaging Recycling Law

As a specified business operator under the Containers and Packaging Recycling Law, Ryohin Keikaku works to realize a circular society. As such, we track the weight of product containers and packaging sold each year, and pay a recycling fee to the Japan Containers and Packaging Recycling Association.

Report on the Recycling of Specified Home Appliances (Japanese)

The total number of televisions, refrigerators, and washing machines re-merchandised in FY2024/8 (April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025) in accordance with the Law for the Recycling of Specified Kinds of Home Appliances (Home Appliance Recycling Law) is shown below.

(1) Number of consigned units for recycling specified household equipment waste (by units / weight / %)

(2) Actual results of recycling by type of material (reported in accordance with Article 47, Item 1 of the Enforcement Regulations)

The total weight of relevant parts and materials if they are made transferable for a fee or free of charge to those who will use them as parts or materials for products.