BASF conducts a coastal cleanup activity at Chigasaki Southern Beach to commemorate its 70th anniversary

Tokyo, Japan – November 12, 2019 － Celebrating its 70th anniversary in Japan, BASF conducted a coastal cleanup event at Chigasaki Southern Beach (Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture) on November 9, which was attended by approximately 110 employee volunteers and their families.

BASF’s relationship with Japan stretches back to the Meiji era, when Indigo Pure BASF dyes were imported for Japan’s traditional navy blue colored “Kon-Gasuri” Pattern. On October 12, 1949, Color Chemie Trading Co. Ltd. was established, the predecessor of BASF Japan Ltd. Since then, BASF has been growing together with its customers in the Japanese market.

To celebrate this milestone, BASF Japan participated in the “International Coastal Cleanup (ICC)” campaign, which is conducted annually in more than 100 countries and regions worldwide. The event at Chigasaki is part of these activities. At the event, BASF collected garbage, analyzed it and compiled data about it, using the international ICC method. All the information will be provided to the ocean plastic waste database of the Japan Environmental Action Network (JEAN), the contact point for ICC in Japan. BASF Japan aims to repeat this employee volunteering activity every year as a regular contribution to society.

BASF is involved in a variety of projects and initiatives to develop solutions that reduce and eliminate plastic waste in the environment, especially in the ocean. Examples include the establishment of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste (AEPW), a global alliance to drive solutions that help to solve the world’s plastic waste problem; participation in the Operation Clean Sweep^®, an international initiative of the plastics industry aimed at preventing the loss of plastic pellets into the environment; and the promotion of the “ChemCycling Project” to produce new products from chemically recycled plastic waste. The ocean cleanup activity in Japan is also aligned with these global initiatives.

About BASF in Japan

BASF has been a committed partner to Japan since 1888.  BASF operates 23 production sites in Japan, including 16 admixture plants of the construction chemicals division. In addition, BASF maintains a strong research and development presence in Japan, with facilities in Amagasaki, Yokohama, Chigasaki, and Naruto. As of the end of 2018, BASF employed 1,138 employees in Japan, and recorded sales of about €1.8 billion to customers in the country.  Further information is available on the Internet at www.basf.com/jp.

About BASF

At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. The approximately 122,000 employees in the BASF Group work on contributing to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio is organized into six segments: Chemicals, Materials, Industrial Solutions, Surface Technologies, Nutrition & Care and Agricultural Solutions. BASF generated sales of around €63 billion in 2018. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchange in Frankfurt (BAS) and as American Depositary Receipts (BASFY) in the U.S. Further information at www.basf.com.