At the Unitika Group, we are committed to a wide range of initiatives targeting enhanced enterprise value and long-term corporate growth. The basis of these initiatives is formed by development and enhancement of our business as well as by establishing a robust cooperate structure that provides us with the ability to respond to ongoing changes in the business environment. However, we are also acutely aware of how our business initiatives are intertwined with our corporate social responsibility, and we understand that it is absolutely essential for a better enterprise value to establish a relationship of trust with our stakeholders. For the Unitika Group, this approach has always demonstrated our long-term commitment to our corporate social responsibility (CSR).

In promoting our CSR initiatives, we have also remained dedicated to defining and developing the systems required to implement and manage our essential functions, which include addressing environmental issues, ensuring legal compliance, managing product safety, and implementing internal audits and controls. In July 2008, we established our CSR Office to ensure that we pursue these important functions with greater effectiveness and oversight. Headed by the Director in charge and managed by the full-time senior management staff, this office is empowered to address a comprehensive range of CSR requirements. For example, it has pursued risk management by adopting a system that ensures rapid and effective risk assessment and response.

Among the most important of Unitika's CSR initiatives are those that address environmental challenges. This emphasis is appropriate, as the twenty-first century has been called "the era of the environment," with issues such as the potential for global warming and environmental pollution now assuming a significantly greater share of our corporate responsibility. In keeping with our Group ideal of "contributing to society by linking lifestyles and technologies," we have long made a priority of interlinking our Group's corporate initiatives while placing priority on the environment.

Our focus on the environment testifies to our basic approach of contributing to the emergence of a society committed to recycling resources. It includes a variety of efforts to reduce our environmental load, including the development of recycling technologies for processing refuse and wastewater, the development of biomass-based polylactide polymer Terramac® contributing to less emission of CO2, and the implementation of environmental assessments targeting the air, water, and soil, all of which reflect Unitika's commitment to the environment. We are also promoting Group-wide registration for the ISO 14001 environmental management standards, of which certification encompasses six Unitika plants and other major facilities; moreover, our main plants have converted from oil to natural gas for their energy requirements. Clearly, in terms of both our business and operations, we have been focusing on the most pressing environmental issues.

Under our new three-year medium-term management plan, "Reform 2011", which began in April this year, we have been cultivating eco-friendly business models as reflected by our recycling business, our environmental materials business, and our reputation as a manufacturer of Terramac® . This testifies to our management vision as a good corporate citizen contributing to a healthier environment and a more comfortable way of life. Committed to reinforcing and promoting these efforts and building upon our past initiatives as an environmentally responsible company, we are now in an excellent position to promote additional specific goals as required by CSR.

I trust this report clarifies our commitment to the CSR initiatives the Unitika Group is pursuing as a responsible corporate citizen, and I welcome your support as we pursue these initiatives.