ITOCHU Announces the Introduction of a Shopping Basket Using Ocean Plastic Waste as a Raw Material at FamilyMart Stores in Locations Including Tsushima City, Nagasaki Prefecture

February 9, 2021

ITOCHU Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Yoshihisa Suzuki, President & COO; hereinafter “ITOCHU”) announced today that FamilyMart Co., Ltd. (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Takashi Sawada, Representative Director and President; hereinafter “FamilyMart”), ITOCHU and TerraCycle Japan LLC (headquartered in Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture; Eric Kawabata, APAC General Manager; hereinafter “TerraCycle”) have developed a shopping basket using ocean plastic waste that has drifted ashore in Tsushima City, Nagasaki Prefecture, as part of its raw materials.
FamilyMart, ITOCHU and TerraCycle will introduce this shopping basket at four FamilyMart stores in locations such as Tsushima City and Iki City in Nagasaki Prefecture beginning Friday, February 12, 2021 to further community-oriented activities for achieving the sustainable development goals (SDGs).

Ocean plastic waste is an issue that has drawn global attention in recent years. Measures addressing this issue have been a matter of urgency. Specifically, it is estimated that an annual total of about 20,000 m3 of ocean plastic waste has drifted ashore in Tsushima City, Nagasaki Prefecture.* It has been an issue of serious public concern.

  • *Source: Tsushima City SDGs and Future City Plan (published by Tsushima City on August 26, 2020)

TerraCycle secured ocean plastic waste collected in Tsushima City to manufacture this new shopping basket in collaboration with ITOCHU.
FamilyMart, ITOCHU and TerraCycle will work on raising awareness of the issue of ocean plastic waste by offering customers the chance to use the shopping basket at FamilyMart stores.

Shopping basket

◆ Stores introducing the shopping basket

・ FamilyMart Tsushima Izuhara Otebashi Store (Tsushima City, Nagasaki Prefecture)
・ FamilyMart Iki Ashibe Store (Iki City, Nagasaki Prefecture)
・ FamilyMart Iki Gonoura Higashi Store (Iki City, Nagasaki Prefecture)
・ FamilyMart Bayside Place Store (Fukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture)


FamilyMart, ITOCHU and TerraCycle will further community-oriented activities for the achievement of the SDGs through the reduction of ocean plastic waste and the enhancement of awareness of the issue of ocean plastics.

Company Information

◆ FamilyMart Co., Ltd.

Head Office 3-1-21 Shibaura, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Established September 1, 1981
Representative Takashi Sawada, Representative Director and President
Business Outline Franchise system-based convenience store business

◆ ITOCHU Corporation

Head Office 2-5-1 Kita-Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Established December 1, 1949
Representative Yoshihisa Suzuki, President & COO
Business Outline Domestic trading, import, export and tripartite transactions of products in the fields of textiles, machinery, metals, energy, chemicals, foods, housing life, information and finance, business investments in Japan and overseas, etc.

◆ TerraCycle Japan LLC

Head Office Yokohama Yusen Building 3F, 3-9 Kaigan-dori, Naka-ku, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture
Established September 2013
Representative Eric Kawabata, APAC General Manager
Business Outline Provision and operation of recycling programs