Support for the Next Generation Development
Support for the Next Generation Development
Holding “Space Lessons”
Since 2006, Sapporo has teamed up with the Associate Professor Sugimoto of Okayama University, Institute of Plant Science and Resources Laboratory to investigate the possibilities of “food” in space. Of these activities, the seeds of “Haruna Nijo,” a barley variety developed by Sapporo Breweries, has spent five months in the International Space Station and returned to earth as “space barley.”
With the cooperation of Associate Professor Sugimoto, Sapporo Breweries has been holding the hands-on event “Space Lessons” twice every year from 2008, at the development test field of Raw Material Development Laboratory in Ota City, Gunma Prefecture, featuring lessons incorporating the seeds of “space barley.” Local elementary school children sow seeds in autumn and harvest the seeds next spring.
This initiative aims to reinforce children’s interest in space through these events, with the hope that a future scientist or astronaut will emerge from the participants of these events. We will continue to nurture children’s “dreams about space” with our activities.
VOICE
Associate Professor Manabu Sugimoto
Institute of Plant Science and Resources Laboratory, Okayama University
These hands-on events using “space barley” are perfect opportunities to teach children that having humans go beyond the earth’s atmosphere and to use and live in space is no longer just a dream, and active research is being undertaken to make this a reality. I hope this will help connect space and children as a bridge to the future.
Support for the development of aquaculture feed for sea bream that takes marine conservation into consideration
Since July 2022, the Product Technology Innovation Department (located in the Shizuoka Plant) has been providing malt feed to Shizuoka Prefectural Yaizu Fisheries High School for their research on raising cultured sea bream with sustainable feed that takes marine conservation into consideration, which is partially made from malt feed (beer lees) from the beer production process. Natural anchovy resources, the main raw material for aquaculture feed, have been decreasing in recent years, which has a significant impact on other marine organisms, while the consumption of marine products has increased dramatically worldwide, making the sustainable use of marine resources in the future a difficult situation. In order to protect the marine environment, it is hoped that aquaculture, which accounts for half of the marine products produced in the world, can be made sustainable and that raw materials can be developed to replace natural fish. The results of this study show that cultured red sea bream fed with this feed has a flavor quality that is comparable to that of ordinary cultured red sea bream, expanding the possibility of using it as a feed for marine products. We will continue to cooperate with the school to develop a more sustainable aquaculture industry. The research is scheduled to be presented at the Japan Society of Fisheries Science Spring Meeting for High School Students to be held on March 30.
Providing opportunities for workplace experience and internship
To help nurture children who will carry the next-generation, the Sapporo Group provides workplace experience opportunities to junior high school students and internships to high school and college students. Sapporo Lion provides an environment for deepening thoughts on the importance of work and the connection with the future society through experiential work.
Conducting traffic safety activities
Since 2017, Sapporo Group Logistics has invited children and teachers from local kindergartens to its traffic safety classes, with the goal of creating a safe society in which children can live happily. In 2019, Hokkaido Branch (Eniwa City, Hokkaido), Shizuoka Branch (Yaizu City, Shizuoka Prefecture), and Kyushu Branch (Hita City, Oita Prefecture) worked together with the company’s logistics partners to hold traffic safety classes taught by instructors from local traffic safety associations. Children learned how to correctly cross the road at traffic lights and how to walk on the roads, rode trucks and forklifts, and experienced blind spots as seen by truck drivers.
Sapporo Group Logistics also works together with local communities to carry out activities aimed at increasing public awareness of traffic safety. These include standing by the roadside and waving flags urging drivers to drive safely, and participating in truck parades hosted by local traffic safety associations.
