Miyakonojo City, Kirishima Shuzo, and Starbucks Conclude Partnership Agreement to Build a Circular Regional Society through Recycling 'Shochu Dregs' and 'Coffee Grounds'

【Signing Ceremony: From left: Kunitake Enatsu, President of Kirishima Shuzo; Takanaga Ikeda, Mayor of Miyakonojo; Satoshi Matsudo, Store Manager of Starbucks Miyakonojo KIRISHIMA GREENSHIP icoia; Tetsuya Umenai, West Japan Region Head of Starbucks Coffee Japan】

Kirishima Shuzo Co., Ltd. [Headquarters: Miyakonojo City, Miyazaki; President: Kunitake Enatsu], Miyakonojo City, and Starbucks Coffee Japan, Ltd. concluded a partnership agreement on Monday, April 27, 2026, aimed at building a circular regional society utilizing 'shochu dregs' and 'coffee grounds.' Moving forward, the three parties will collaborate on initiatives such as using biogas generated from shochu and coffee waste as regional energy to build a circular society in Miyakonojo City.

■ Previous Environmental Activities of Miyakonojo City, Kirishima Shuzo, and Starbucks
Miyakonojo City declared its 'Zero Carbon City' status in March 2023, aiming for carbon neutrality by 2050. Based on the 2nd Miyakonojo Environmental Basic Plan, the city promotes renewable energy, energy saving, groundwater conservation, and citizen cleanup activities. Kirishima Shuzo and Starbucks shared a vision for local community and environmental sustainability, starting a collaboration project in 2022. On January 27, 2026, they opened 'KIRISHIMA GREENSHIP icoia' as a place for 'community connection born from resource circulation.' At icoia, they hold customer-participatory workshops such as experimenting with compost made from shochu and coffee waste. The three parties, sharing a vision for the region's future, have now concluded the 'Agreement on Building a Rich Circular Regional Society Created with Shochu and Coffee Grounds.'

■ Goals of the Agreement
This agreement aims to reduce waste and promote regional resource circulation by recycling 'shochu dregs,' a byproduct of the shochu manufacturing process at Kirishima Shuzo, and 'coffee grounds' from Starbucks.

● Utilizing the 'Recycling Business Designation System' for the first time in 9 cities in Miyazaki
Starting March 2, 2026, Kirishima Shuzo began accepting coffee grounds from two Starbucks stores in Miyakonojo City at its shochu dregs recycling plant. This initiative utilizes the 'Recycling Business Designation System (*1)' established by Miyakonojo City on January 1, 2026. This is the first such system in the 9 cities of Miyazaki Prefecture, and Kirishima Shuzo is the first business to utilize it in Miyakonojo.
*1: A system where the city can individually designate businesses for 'General Waste Recycling Transportation' and 'General Waste Recycling Utilization' when recycling of business-related general waste is certain.

● Approx. 20kg of daily coffee grounds becomes energy for approx. 1.4 households
The amount of coffee grounds accepted from the two Starbucks stores is about 20kg per day. By processing this through methane fermentation, approximately 2.2㎥ of biogas is generated. This is equivalent to the energy used by about 1.4 households and is expected to reduce CO2 emissions by approximately 0.9 tons annually due to reduced city gas usage (*2).
*2: Based on Kirishima Shuzo research.

In the future, the three parties will deepen their collaboration through waste reduction, promoting regional resource circulation, and conducting environmental workshops to realize a rich circular regional society.

About Kirishima Shuzo Co., Ltd.
Founded: May 1916 (Current: Kirishima Holdings Co., Ltd.)
Established: March 2014 (*3)
Founder: Kishisuke Enatsu
Representative: President Kunitake Enatsu
Capital: 3 million yen (*4)
Sales: 52,540.62 million yen (Fiscal year ending March 2025)
Employees: 642 (Regular employees only, as of April 2025)