[3-part series] Collaboration with Ogasawara Village 2025 Report: "AQTION! Partner, Nichirei Corporation Activity Report"

Did you know about the connection between Sumida Aquarium and the Ogasawara?
Since its opening in 2012, Sumida Aquarium has been working in collaboration with Ogasawara Village to promote this World Heritage Site located in Tokyo.
This column will be a three-part series introducing initiatives related to Ogasawara in fiscal year 2025.
In the third episode, we will talk about the efforts of Nichirei Corporation and Sumida Aquarium, who are working together as AQTION! partners.

■Conclusion of a cooperation agreement

In August 2025, Nichirei Corporation and Sumida Aquarium signed a partnership agreement*1.

The purpose of this agreement is to nurture the skills of children who will be responsible for the future, and to contribute to the conservation of local communities and biodiversity.

Nichirei, which owns land on Chichijima Island in the Ogasawara Islands, has endorsed Sumida Aquarium's "AQTION!"*2 initiative, leading to the conclusion of this agreement.

Through this agreement, the two companies plan to provide opportunities for thinking about social issues through conservation activities for green sea turtles, which breed in Ogasawara Village, Tokyo, and disseminating information about Ogasawara Village.

■About travel to Ogasawara in September 2025

Sumida Aquarium has taken in two baby green sea turtles born in the Ogasawara Islands, and has been carefully raising them for a year until they reach a size where they are less likely to be attacked by predators (more information here ), after which the animal care staff will release them back into their native seas.

This year, I traveled to the Ogasawara with three members of Nichirei's Sustainability Strategy Department.

Here we will introduce some of our activities.

■ Participating in a sea turtle class

On the first day of our trip, we participated in a sea turtle class held by the Ogasawara Marine Center, where we spent a full three hours learning about sea turtles.

Experience egg burial as part of conservation activities

The coastline around the Ogasawara Marine Center is known as the "Ice Coast" because there used to be an ice factory in the area owned by Nitto Ice Corporation (one of the ice companies that became Nichirei).

The Marine Center still has a relief of the remains of the ice factory.

<Nichirei Sato>
"It was my first time to touch a baby turtle and experience polishing its shell.

The baby turtles seemed more comfortable than we had imagined, and although we were surprised, it was a fun time.

We visited the site of the former ice factory in Ogasawara Village, which has a close relationship with our company, and learned that the ice coast is a valuable place for the egg-laying and breeding of green sea turtles, an endangered species.

This experience has further strengthened my desire to continue working to protect the rich natural environment for the future."

■ Heart and Rock Returned to the Sea

On the second day of the trip, we witnessed the heart and lock return to the sea.

In addition to Sumida Aquarium and Nichirei, the two dolphins were watched by many people, including the mayor and deputy mayor of Ogasawara Village, and viewers of the YouTube broadcast, as they swam away, free from the care of the animal care staff. YouTube Archive

<Nichirei Kamiyama>
"I was moved by the strength of the figure as it returned to the sea without much hesitation.

It was only a matter of time before it disappeared from view after it entered the sea, but we watched over it, hoping that it would grow up safely and return to Ogasawara."

■Omura Beach Clean-up Activities

During their trip, they not only learned about the ecology of green sea turtles, but also participated in the "TOKYO Marine Debris Zero Action" organized by the Tokyo Metropolitan Environmental Public Corporation, and cleaned up Omura Beach.

<Nichirei Iizuka>
"Before the cleanup, I wondered where there could be trash on such beautiful white sand.

When I actually participated in the activity and searched for trash, I was very surprised to see that there was not only relatively large trash such as pieces of fishing gear, but also a lot of microplastics lying around.

I believe that cleanup activities have been ongoing up until now, but in addition to continuing these efforts, I strongly feel that it is important for humans to not throw trash into the ocean."

■Towards future activities

<Sumida Aquarium Horiuchi>
"This trip to Ogasawara was a valuable opportunity for us at Sumida Aquarium to combine our know-how with Nichirei's unique insight and strength to create something that will connect to the future.

In order to leave this beautiful sea and island to future generations, we must first create opportunities for everyone to learn more about the diversity, nature, and charm of Ogasawara's animals.

I hope that in our future activities we can promote such initiatives together."

<Nichirei Sato>
"During this visit to Ogasawara, in addition to participating in green sea turtle conservation activities, I was able to experience many attractions and gain experiences that can only be gained by visiting the area, such as the beautiful sea and abundant nature.

As a company that has been solving social issues for 80 years since its founding, the Nichirei Group believes there are things it can do to protect the natural environment for the future.

With the support of Sumida Aquarium, we will continue to promote initiatives and disseminate information that contribute to the local community and biodiversity conservation."

Sumida Aquarium and Nichirei will continue to provide opportunities for people to think about and appreciate the importance of nature and society, including through green sea turtle conservation activities.

The two companies will continue to work together to expand various initiatives.

*1 Partnership Agreement: Sumida Aquarium in Tokyo Skytree Town® concludes biodiversity conservation partnership agreement with Nichirei Corporation - Connecting the rich ecosystem to the future through information dissemination from Ogasawara Village - [Official]
*2AQTION!: Release dated December 20, 2021: "AQTION!", a sustainability promotion project that passes the baton to the future of the Earth