The "Friendly Menu"
Healthy dishes that reduce environmental impact
to change your awareness and behavior

In 2001, the Panasonic Group launched “Healthy Panasonic,” a health promotion initiative, through a three-way collaboration of the company, the labor union, and the health insurance association, and in 2012 it began offering group-wide health event dishes in employee cafeterias. Panasonic's health activities, which began in 2019, aim to improve employees' health literacy and encourage them to practice healthy lifestyles.

Through group-wide efforts over the years, health promotion has gradually spread throughout the company, and awareness of improving lifestyle habits, such as exercise and diet, has steadily increased. Since 2024, “Healthy Panasonic” has been promoting activities under the future-oriented themes of “investing in your health” and “creating an environment where you can easily become healthy” while also encouraging actions that are healthy and help reduce environmental impact.

At the 2021 Tokyo Nutrition for Growth (N4G) Summit, the Japanese government committed to “further improving the nutritional status of its people by promoting nutrition- and environment-friendly diets while also taking advantage of innovation, digitalization, and science and technology”. In response to this, the Panasonic Health Promotion Department developed menu items that support health and help reduce environmental impact—an initiative unique to our Group, which promotes PGI. The menu items for employee cafeterias in each region are developed by the respective contracted food service companies, and we called on them to hold food education events with the common themes of health and environment.

When you see a dish, you might naturally start to wonder, “Where do the ingredients for this dish come from, and where do they end up?” You might also begin choosing dishes while thinking about food waste. One of the aims of the “Friendly Menu” is to improve this kind of "food literacy." The “Friendly Menu” was implemented in 65 cafeterias in its first year, 2024, and has expanded to 71 locations in its second year.

Soy meat, used in three of the shared dishes on the “Friendly Menu,” is gaining attention as a meat substitute for its low-fat, high-protein content and its potential to help reduce environmental impact. According to a registered dietitian, “Soy meat is actually used in processed foods such as frozen gyoza, so I think many people eat it without even realizing it. However, since it is still an unfamiliar ingredient to many, if we clearly state that a product contains soy meat, they may be put off.” In addition, since Sea Vegetable’s seaweed is not commonly used in school lunch settings, it seemed that the ingredient posed a somewhat high barrier for contracted school lunch companies to introduce it.

These challenges were overcome through holding opinion exchange meetings (study sessions) on soy meat, as well as through collaboration with Fuji Oil Co., Ltd. And SEA VEGETABLE COMPANY. The soy meat has been carefully prepared to be more approachable, with cooking techniques that enhance its flavor and remake versions of popular dishes. Another factor that determines whether or not to implement the initiative is that the cooking process is not too complicated and the operation allows for smooth service. Samples were sent to each location along with recipes to encourage the respective contracted food service companies to consider adopting them.

The four shared menu items are "Mapo eggplant with soy meat and minced pork," "Soy meat and beef stewed in tomato sauce," "Soy meat, pork, and plenty of vegetables in a sweet and sour sauce," and "Fried white fish with green laver tartar sauce (Sea Vegetable)." On the days when the “Friendly Menu” was offered, the cafeterias put up food display cards and banners, along with posters and other materials asking environmental questions, such as “What is plant-based food?” and “Are seaweeds decreasing?”