March 15, 2021 Science Based Targets Initiative Approves YKK’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets

YKK targets consistent with reductions required to keep global warming to 1.5°C

YKK Corporation’s emissions reduction targets have been approved by the independent Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) as consistent with levels required to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement – limiting global warming to well-below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit warming to 1.5°C.

With the goal of being carbon neutral by 2050, YKK Corporation’s target submission for scope 1 and 2 emissions is a reduction of absolute emissions 50% by 2030 from a 2018 base year. This exceeds the minimum ambition for 1.5° C pathway defined by the Absolute Contraction approach and is therefore considered ambitious by SBTi. Furthermore, YKK’s target submission for scope 3 emissions is a reduction of absolute emissions 30% by 2030 from a 2018 base year, which also exceeds the minimum ambition defined by the Absolute Contraction approach and thus is ambitious. YKK is currently the only zipper manufacturer to have its emissions reduction targets approved by SBTi.

The certification by SBTi is just one more way that YKK is demonstrating its long-term commitment to taking climate responsibility. In March 2020 YKK signed the Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action, which sets the goal for the fashion industry of 30% aggregate reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2030 and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. YKK confirmed that commitment in October 2020, with the release of its Sustainability Vision 2050, the company’s roadmap for addressing climate change, material resources, water resources, chemical management and human rights, and aligned its efforts with ten UN SDGs.

“YKK aims to be a company that grows sustainably with society,” says Hiroaki Otani, President, YKK Corporation, who continues:

“That is why we have set ‘Better products at a lower cost and greater speed, more sustainably’ as our motto for the next four years. At the core of all our business activities is the ‘Cycle of Goodness’ corporate philosophy, which expresses YKK’s spirit of prospering together with all stakeholders. I believe this concept includes sustainability. YKK’s most precious stakeholders are nature and the environment.”