The Pigeon Group is promoting efforts to realize a circular society in order to “leave a rich Earth for the future of babies born tomorrow.”
Baby Nursing Bottle Recycling
Among the many baby products available, nursing bottles are often used from the earliest days after a child’s birth, and family members can feel attached to them even after they are no longer needed. We are pursuing companywide resources recycling products to allow us to accept cherished nursing bottles that have served their purpose from our customers and reuse these resources by remaking them into new forms. We are also continually working to reduce plastic waste.
Baby Nursing Bottle Recycling (Singapore)
In Singapore, we have been collecting and recycling used plastic baby bottles since 2019. Collection boxes are located in various places throughout Singapore, including stores, nurseries, and community centers. As part of this initiative, we offer Pigeon brand nursing bottles at a discounted price to customers who bring their used nursing bottles to baby fairs and other events. By the end of April 2026, we had collected a total of 116,749* nursing bottles. Going forward, we will continue our activities with the target of collecting more than 15% of the annual sales volume of wide neck nursing bottles sold by Pigeon Singapore Pte. Ltd. by 2030.
*Calculated based on the weight of one 160 ml nursing bottle made of PPSU (polyphenylsulfone).
At the Baby Fair held in April 2024, original name tags were made using the collected baby nursing bottles and given as gifts to customers who recycled their used nursing bottles and purchased Pigeon brand nursing bottles and Natural Botanical Skin Care Series products. 250 name tags were given away to customers over the course of three days. In addition, for each Pigeon brand nursing bottle sold at a discount during the Baby Fair, 2 SGD (equivalent to approximately 230 yen in Japanese yen) was donated to Smile Asia, an organization that supports babies with cleft lip and/or palate. The cumulative sales volume reached 1,993 bottles, and the total donation amounted to 3,986 SGD (equivalent to approximately 460,000 yen in Japanese yen).
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Original name tags made from collected baby nursing bottles
Furthermore, in September 2024, we held a workshop for employees. At this workshop, we learned about the current state of plastic recycling and the types of plastics that can be recycled. We also had the opportunity to reuse used plastics and make our own name tags, carabiners, coasters, and other items.
Baby Nursing Bottle Recycling (China)
In China, we have been collecting and recycling used PPSU (polyphenylsulfone) nursing bottles from consumers since 2022, recovering over 11 tons* of PPSU bottles in total. The collected nursing bottles are transformed into meal trays and flower pots that can be used by children when they grow up, and are provided to customers as gifts. Our PPSU nursing bottle recycling program was selected as one of Green Dot China’s 2024 Annual Cases.
*Calculated based on the weight of one 160 ml nursing bottle made of PPSU (polyphenylsulfone).
Baby Nursing Bottle Recycling (Japan)
There are two types of baby nursing bottles: plastic and heat-resistant glass. In Japan, there is no system for recycling plastic by type, and heat-resistant glass nursing bottles are made of a special type of glass, so they are generally treated as "non-burnable waste" rather than "recyclable waste." For these reasons, the recycling of nursing bottles in Japan has not progressed. Therefore, in collaboration with Akachan Honpo Co., Ltd., local governments, and partner companies such as Pantech Corporation, which mainly handles the total production of plastic recycling, we are working to collect and recycle nursing bottles that are no longer in use at home.
Baby Nursing Bottle Recycling Process
1.Collection location
Collection boxes have been set up in approximately 141 locations(as of May 2026), including the Pigeon Corporation headquarters building, nursery schools operated by Pigeon Hearts Corporation, all Akachan Honpo stores, and Hitachi-Omiya City related facilities, to accept baby nursing bottles from customers.
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A collection box installed at the Pigeon Corporation headquarters building
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A collection box installed at the Akachan Honpo store
2.Collection Results
The total number of baby nursing bottles collected has 51,762 by end of December 2025. Please note that the number of baby nursing bottles collected does not include nipples, hoods, or caps; it only counts the number of bottle.
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Collected baby nursing bottles (left) and caps (right)
3.Recycling after collection
The baby nursing bottles we receive from customers are separated by material, recycled, and reborn as part of the raw materials for new products. In addition, from March 2023, we also started a “circular manufacturing" initiative in which some of the collected heat-resistant glass nursing bottles are used as raw materials to be reborn as new nursing bottles.
To raise awareness of baby nursing bottle recycling
We are also working to raise awareness of our activities in order to raise awareness of nursing bottle recycling among more customers, related companies, and local governments, and to promote increased collection and recycling efforts. “Passing on the baton” is an awareness campaign we have been co-hosting with Akachan Honpo Co., Ltd. since June 2024. The initiative aims to strengthen the bonds of parenting and raise awareness of recycling by transforming nursing bottles once used by infants into “Maternity Marks,” which are then passed on as a “baton” to families with newborns. At this event, we explain the concerns families have regarding used nursing bottles and the challenges of recycling them. We also hold workshops for expectant mothers where they can create Maternity Marks using recycled nursing bottle parts as raw materials. In June 2025, we held one-day events at the Akachan Honpo Prime Tree Akaike Store (Aichi Prefecture) and the Akachan Honpo Grand Tree Musashi-Kosugi Store (Kanagawa Prefecture). In October, we participated as an exhibitor for two days at "Maternity & Baby Festa Osaka 2025" held at INTEX Osaka (Osaka Prefecture). Across these four days, we raised awareness of our nursing bottle recycling initiative among many visitors, welcoming a total of 649 participants.
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Maternity mark made from materials partially extracted from plastic baby nursing bottles
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Collaboration with companies and local governments in recycling baby nursing bottles
In 2024, we participated in the “Kawasaki Plastic Recycling Project” promoted by Kawasaki City, collaborating with the city and five other nursing bottle brand owners to conduct a pilot program for collecting and recycling used nursing bottles. During the approximately one-year pilot period, thanks to the active cooperation of city residents, we collected a total of 691 nursing bottles (2,462 parts). At the same time, this initiative highlighted key future challenges, including raising awareness among parenting households, expanding collection networks, streamlining shipping and manual sorting, and matching recycled materials with suitable applications. Moving forward, we will explore sustainable collection schemes for the childcare industry and work to visualize the social value generated by this initiative, aiming to further contribute to a circular economy.
In addition, together with the Ryuhyo Glass Museum, operated by Gio Co., Ltd., we are conducting a demonstration experiment to recycle heat-resistant glass baby nursing bottles into heat-resistant cups, and have begun serving hot drinks in the heat-resistant cups at the cafe attached to the Ryuhyo Glass Museum.
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