11 Food and Beverage Companies Collaborate to Support Hokkaido's Future, Establishing 'FOOD CAREER HOKKAIDO'

Eleven companies (in no particular order)—Calbee, Inc., Calbee Potato, Inc., Sapporo Breweries Ltd., Shinseien Co., Ltd., Nippon Beet Sugar Manufacturing Co., Ltd., NH Foods Ltd., Nippon White Farm Co., Ltd., Nippon Food Packer, Inc., Hokuren Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives, Megmilk Snow Brand Co., Ltd., and Yotsuba Milk Products Co., Ltd.—have announced the establishment of the Hokkaido Food Industry Human Resource Alliance (known as 'FOOD CAREER HOKKAIDO'). Faced with depopulation and labor shortages in Hokkaido, the alliance aims to communicate the appeal and social significance of food-related work to the next generation, while advancing joint recruitment and human resource development initiatives.

[Background of Establishment]

Hokkaido, with its abundant nature and vast land, plays a significant role in food supply, producing and manufacturing essential items for our dining tables.

However, Japan's food self-sufficiency rate remains at a low level of 38%, making its maintenance and improvement a national challenge.

Furthermore, Hokkaido is experiencing a severe labor shortage across the food industry due to the migration of the younger generation out of the region. In response to this situation, companies and organizations based in Hokkaido that have been deeply involved in the 'food' sector—from raw material procurement to production and manufacturing—have agreed to unite beyond individual corporate boundaries to address these common issues and translate them into concrete actions.

As a first step, the alliance has begun recruitment activities targeting high school students, university students, and vocational school students across Japan.

[Planned Recruitment Activities]

- Implementation of joint job fairs to convey the appeal of working in Hokkaido (for high school students, university students, and the general public). - Development of career education sessions conducted by participating companies/organizations for high school students outside of Hokkaido. - Strengthening the recruitment of technical personnel essential for supporting the food and agricultural sectors.

*Participation in each measure will be at the discretion of each participating company or organization based on their situation, and not all participating companies or organizations will necessarily participate in all measures.