Tokyo, October 15, 2015 – Rakuten Socio Business, Inc., a special subsidiary company of Rakuten, Inc., announced that it established a plant factory in Ota Ward in Tokyo on September 16, and that from today it will supply vegetables grown at the factory to the staff cafeteria in Rakuten’s head office.
Established in 2007 as an internal outsourcing company within Rakuten Group, Rakuten Socio Business works to advance the employment of people with disabilities and provide them with a working environment in which they can engage in work in an active manner. The company has created employment opportunities for disabled people throughout Rakuten Group, subcontracting work in a wide range of areas such as web services and data generation. With the establishment of the plant factory, the company has created a new venue for people with disabilities to work.
At the newly established plant factory, vegetables are produced hydroponically with assistance from M-Hydroponic Research Co., Ltd. and Sanshin Metal Working Co., Ltd. The subcontracted work carried out at the factory includes seed planting, pruning, insect removal, packing of harvested vegetables, and hydroponic system operation. As hydroponic vegetable production requires no soil preparation and provides stable employment throughout the year with no busy or off seasons, the factory provides a relatively pleasant working environment for people with disabilities.
Together with the two companies mentioned above, Rakuten Socio Business is engaging in R&D work on hydroponic production and is aiming to produce and sell vegetables other than lettuce—the vegetable currently being produced at the factory. The company is looking to expand its sales routes and is plans to employ more people with disabilities in the future.
October 15, 2015
- Rakuten, Inc.
- Rakuten Socio Business, Co. Ltd.
Rakuten Socio Business to Provide Factory-Grown Vegetables to Rakuten Head Office Cafeteria
- Providing Further Employment Opportunities to People with Disabilities -
About Rakuten Socio Business
Company name: Rakuten Socio Business, Co. Ltd.
President & Representative Director: Akio Sugihara(Rakuten, Inc. Managing Executive Officer and Director)
Head Office: Rakuten Crimson House, 1-14-1 Tamagawa, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo
Date of establishment: December 5, 2007
Capital: 10 million JPY (wholly owned subsidiary of Rakuten, Inc.)
Employees: 109 (93 of which have disabilities) *As of October 1, 2015
Main areas of business: Outsourced work for Rakuten Group including Rakuten Ichiba, etc.
Recruitment webpage: https://corp.rakuten.co.jp/socio/recruit/ (Japanese)
