Kao Corporation Receives Sustainability Award

Kao Corporation, makers of more than 20 brands, including Bioré, Goldwell, Jergens, John Frieda, Kanebo, Laurier, Merries and Molton Brown, has received the RobecoSAM Gold Class award for the second consecutive year in the 2016 Corporate Sustainability Assessment. The Japanese cosmetics firm was selected as both Industry Leader and Industry Mover, gaining recognition as both the top scorer in the Personal Products sector and the company that most improved its score in the sector.
 
RobecoSAM, a research specialist focused exclusively on Sustainability Investing, evaluates the sustainability performance of leading global companies in terms of economic, environmental and social criteria. It releases an Annual Sustainability Yearbook each January. From among a total of 3,400 companies evaluated for the 2016 Yearbook, RobecoSAM awarded 77 Gold Class medals, 74 Silver Class medals and 97 Bronze Class medals. Among 59 industries, six Japanese companies, including Kao, were named Industry Leader with the highest score in their respective industries.
 
Last year, Kao was selected for inclusion in the 2015 Dow Jones Sustainability World Index based on an SRI assessment by RobecoSAM, and was selected an Industry Group Leader.
 
According to Kao Group, the company aims to offer solutions to social issues through the delivery of innovative products and services that are based in its core value of Yoki-Monozukuri. By practicing Yoki-Monozukuri from a global perspective, Kao Group says “it will continue to strive for the wholehearted satisfaction and enrichment of the lives of people globally and to contribute to the sustainability of the world.”