Key Initiatives
The TOMY Group seeks to ensure environment-conscious manufacturing in various processes such as designing and materials selection for products and packaging.
Resource-saving, Weight-reducing Designs
We are developing ingenious product designs that save resources by using a reduced number of parts and less plastic, while keeping the fun aspects very much intact.
For example, we repeatedly revised the sound mechanism and the way balls were ejected for our First Steps in English: Disney & Disney Pixar Characters Talking GACHA educational toy for babies to reduce the volume of plastic used and the number of internal components, without compromising the toy’s attractive appearance or fun play experience.
Packaging
PVC-free
We strive to use non-polyvinyl chloride (PVC) packaging materials to minimize the impact on the environment when the waste packaging is incinerated.
Easy-to-remove, Easy-to-sort Packaging
We have started using staple guns instead of bands to fix our Transformers, TOMICA Hyper Series and Drive Head products into their packaging. The staples can be easily cut and removed at home with scissors.
Reusing Packaging as Part of the Game
We are seeking to reduce waste by making the packaging part of the game for children, so they don’t throw it away. For example, the packaging of ANIA Friends can be used as a house for the animal figures, and we print a map on the back of the ANIA Animal Adventure packaging.
Savana animals gift set
Resource-saving GACHA Capsules
With the aim of reducing the amount of plastic resin used in our GACHA capsules (sold by T-ARTS (In Japanese)), we have reduced the size of the capsules to match the size of smaller product items. We also retail items that incorporate a capsule as part of the product design so that capsules would not be discarded as waste.
Changing TOMIX Packaging Materials
We have started using cardboard instead of styrofoam packaging for TOMIX* introductory sets (sold by TOMY TEC (In Japanese)), which contain carriages, rails and power units, and made the packaging smaller. In addition, we replaced some of the plastic blister packaging used to wrap individual parts with more environmentally friendly paper packaging, which in turn, enabled us to satisfy customer demand for bulk buying by switching two-rail packs to four-rail packs.
Educating Children: Eco Toy Activities
Eco-friendly Toys: 100 Years to Play! Creating a Sustainable Society
Toys are vital for the healthy growth of children, our future leaders. TOMY designs environment-conscious toys to encourage children to learn about the environment and take part in environmental action.
Our Eco Toy activities are inspired by our 100 Years to Play! initiative, with the aim of nurturing environmental awareness among children and securing our planet for future generations.
Eco Toy Standards
The TOMY Group designates toys as Eco Toys only if they fulfill the Group’s environmental standards set for each stage of the product lifecycle.
Our Eco Toy standards are determined based on advice from the Green Purchasing Network (GPN) secretariat and managed by our Eco-Toy Committee, comprising TOMY Group specialist personnel in development, safety, production technology, packaging, and the environment.
Our PLARAIL Eco Straight Rail and Eco Curved Rail, which we started selling in 2012, are two of our certified Eco Toys. As toys in which plastic comprises 50% or more of the total weight, and 40% or more of that plastic weight is recycled plastic*, the Eco Straight Rail and Eco Curved Rail were the first toys to receive a certified Eco Mark. We have since applied the same principles in the development of the PLARAIL Eco-block Bridge Girder and TOMICA Parking Case 24.
* “Recycled plastic” means plastic materials that were collected either from post-consumer plastic products or from plastic materials discarded during the product manufacturing process, and then recycled. (Plastic materials reused within the same manufacturing process are not considered recycled plastic.)