Growing Use of Meal Subsidies for Heatstroke and Extreme Heat Prevention! Supporting Employees in Various Work Environments — From Convenience Stores and Vending Machines for Hydration to Delivery Services for 'Hot-Day Remote Work'

Edenred Japan Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President & CEO: Sotaro Amano), provider of the employee meal subsidy service 'Ticket Restaurant,' announces the launch of the 'Summer Heat Countermeasure Support! Adoption Encouragement Campaign' starting Tuesday, July 14, 2026. This initiative targets companies considering new adoption of 'Ticket Restaurant,' supporting the use of meal subsidies as part of heatstroke and heat prevention strategies amid growing corporate interest in extreme heat countermeasures and employee health management.

One Year After 'Mandatory Heatstroke Prevention' — 93.8% Feel the Importance of Countermeasures Has Increased

With summer heat becoming increasingly prolonged and severe, the revised Industrial Safety and Health Regulations were enforced in June 2025, requiring companies to strengthen heatstroke prevention measures in the workplace.

A survey※ conducted by our company of 400 personnel responsible for heatstroke and heat countermeasures at companies with and without on-site operations revealed that 96.7% of companies with on-site operations are implementing or planning to implement heatstroke/heat countermeasures, rising to 83.0% even among companies without on-site operations. Furthermore, 93.8% of all respondents felt that 'the importance of heatstroke and heat countermeasures for employees has increased.' Heat countermeasures in companies have become a critical issue linked to employee health management and talent retention.

Why Meal Subsidies Are Effective for Heatstroke and Extreme Heat Prevention

As summer heat intensifies, corporate heatstroke prevention strategies are expanding beyond cooling equipment distribution and rest time allocation to include creating environments where employees can access water, salt, and light meals when needed.

In particular, for employees working outdoors or in high-temperature environments, enabling easy access to hydration and light snacks during work is essential. For employees utilizing telework or remote work during summer, systems that ensure meal access while minimizing outdoor exposure are in demand.

The meal subsidy service 'Ticket Restaurant' supports summer employee welfare by enabling not only lunch use at restaurants but also beverage and light meal purchases at convenience stores and compatible vending machines, as well as delivery usage via the major delivery service 'Uber Eats' for remote workers. Notably, usage at compatible vending machines surged 136% year-on-year in 2024 and 191% in 2025, highlighting rising demand for vending machines as a vital option for hydration and light meal access during extreme heat.

In response to this growing demand, Edenred Japan will launch the summer-limited 'Summer Heat Countermeasure Support! Adoption Encouragement Campaign' from July to September to support the creation of environments that assist employees working under extreme heat with meals and hydration. This campaign provides companies considering new adoption of 'Ticket Restaurant' with an accessible opportunity to implement meal subsidies, supporting the creation of workplaces conducive to employee health management and meal support.

Three Benefits of Using Meal Subsidies for Heatstroke and Extreme Heat Prevention

The expanding use of the 'Ticket Restaurant' meal subsidy service for heatstroke and heat prevention is driven by three primary benefits:

▸ Benefit 1: Employees on-site can purchase beverages and light meals at convenience stores and vending machines when needed

For employees working outdoors or in high-temperature environments, summer hydration and light meal access are crucial for health management. However, a survey※ of responsible personnel at companies with on-site operations revealed operational challenges in providing beverages and supplies, with top issues including 'Difficulty determining the appropriate level of company support (51.5%)', 'Varied site conditions making uniform responses difficult (38.6%)', and 'Labor-intensive distribution and management of supplies (33.2%)'. In contrast, 'Ticket Restaurant' allows employees to purchase beverages and light meals at convenience stores and compatible vending machines, enabling timely replenishment while reducing corporate distribution and management burdens.

▸ Benefit 2: Meal support continues even during 'Hot-Day Remote Work'

During extreme heat, promoting telework, remote work, or limiting outdoor activities is one heat prevention strategy to reduce commuting and outdoor burdens. Since 'Ticket Restaurant' is usable on Uber Eats, companies can provide meal subsidies regardless of work location, supporting employees who are not commuting or wish to avoid going out during extreme heat.

▸ Benefit 3: If conditions are met, 'Summer Heat Allowances' can be administered as tax-free employee benefits

Cash payments such as 'Summer Heat Allowances' are generally subject to payroll taxation. However, by designing the system as a meal subsidy and operating it to meet prescribed conditions, companies can support employee meals and in-work replenishment as tax-free benefits, reducing their burden.

'Ticket Restaurant' supports operations aligned with tax-free meal subsidy requirements, and from April 2026, the tax-free limit for income tax will double from ¥3,500 to ¥7,500 per month. This creates an increasingly favorable environment for companies to adopt meal subsidies.

※ Edenred Japan 'Survey on the Current State of Hot and Extreme Heat Countermeasures'

(https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000117.000056034.html)

※ Reference: 'Summer Heat Allowance' refers to allowances provided by companies to employees working in high-temperature summer environments. It is not a legal requirement but a welfare or labor measure independently introduced by individual companies. (https://edenred.jp/article/employee-benefits/300/)

Launching the 'Summer Heat Countermeasure Support! Adoption Encouragement Campaign'

As part of its efforts to support corporate extreme heat countermeasures and employee health management, Edenred Japan will launch an adoption encouragement campaign offering up to 50% off charging fees for companies considering new adoption of 'Ticket Restaurant.' By offering discounted system fees within 2026 to qualifying companies, this campaign reduces the burden of adopting meal subsidies and supports the creation of environments where meal support, hydration, and light meal purchases during work are easily accessible. Through this campaign, we aim to widely promote that meal subsidies can be used not only for lunch support but also as part of heatstroke and heat prevention strategies, including replenishment support for outdoor and high-temperature workers and meal assistance for remote work.

< Campaign Overview >

Eligible Companies: Companies that make new inquiries from July 14, 2026, and begin operation of 'Ticket Restaurant' by September 30 — first 100 companies

Campaign Details: System fees for 2026 will be discounted up to 50% for companies with an average charge amount of ¥15,000 or more

Note: For other discount rates and conditions, please inquire.

[Case Study] Kowa Keibi Hoan Co., Ltd. (Chofu, Tokyo) Uses Ticket Restaurant for Extreme Heat Countermeasures

Kowa Keibi Hoan Co., Ltd., which provides traffic guidance security at construction and roadwork sites primarily along the Keio Line, introduced 'Ticket Restaurant' in December 2022