Protection of Biodiversity

• Biodiversity Protection and Preservation Initiatives
• Timber Resource Initiatives
• Environmental Protection and Preservation Initiatives
• Endorsement of the TCFD and TNFD Recommendations

Biodiversity Protection and Preservation Initiatives

The destruction of the natural environment is resulting in biodiversity being lost at an ever-accelerating pace. The Yamaha Group conducts business activities that utilize natural resources, such as the timber used as a raw material to make a variety of products including acoustic musical instruments, and the ecosystems that produce these resources, which are comprised of diverse living organisms. We therefore have a responsibility to protect and preserve forests and the biodiversity therein as a company that uses timber. Based on this recognition, we have enacted the Yamaha Group Sustainability Policy and the Yamaha Group Environmental Policy to guide our business in a nature positive direction to prevent the loss of, and help restore, biodiversity. To this end, the Group promotes appropriate business activities and timber use as well as environmental preservation activities based on its recognition of this responsibility.

Timber Resource Initiatives

Many of the instruments that the Yamaha Group produces, such as pianos and string, percussion, and wind instruments, are primarily made of wood. Timber is also commonly used when making digital musical instruments as well as speakers, soundproof rooms, and other non-instrument products due to the merits of wood in terms of acoustic performance, function, design, and texture.

Considering the diverse variety of timber used in its business operations, the Group established the Yamaha Group Timber Procurement Policy, which sets forth directives for timber usage in order to better conserve this precious resource and to ensure its availability for continued use in the future, without depleting biodiversity or damaging ecosystems. The Group has also established the Yamaha Supplier CSR Code of Conduct, which clearly stipulates points related to the harvesting and trading of timber resources that suppliers are requested to observe. This policy and code guide the Group in conducting sustainable procurement and in fully utilizing timber, a highly renewable resource.

Breakdown of Timber Resources Used by the Yamaha Group by Origin (Fiscal 2025)

Breakdown of Timber Purchase Volumes by Location^*1

• 1 Figures exclude products that are not Yamaha brand or original equipment manufacturer (OEM) or original design manufacturer (ODM) products.

Timber Due Diligence

Sustainable use of timber requires consideration for forest conservation and for timber resource volumes. At the same time, it is crucial to contribute to community development through employment opportunities and infrastructure to sustain the economic viability of the supply chain. The Yamaha Group has established a timber due diligence system and conducts surveys via questionaries to assess the place of origin, the legality of harvesting, and the sustainability of purchased timber resources. Based on the results, we perform stricter verification of the legality for timber deemed to represent a high risk by undertaking further investigations including local site visits and assessments by a committee comprised of members of the Timber Procurement Division and the Sustainability Division.

In fiscal 2025, 98.6% of timber was judged to be at low risk, up from 98.2% in fiscal 2024 (both figures are volume ratio^*1), based on legality confirmation and other standards. Going forward, we will continue to conduct surveys and change the species of trees we use with the aim of achieving a 100% ratio of procured timber that is at low risk.  In addition, Yamaha established new standards for sustainably sourced timber for use in more rigorously judging the sustainability of timber in May 2023 under the guidance of international environmental organization Preferred by Nature. In the past, Yamaha has sought to use sustainably sourced timber by increasing its ratios of use of timber judged to be sustainable by third-party organizations. However, this approach created issues in that it was difficult to judge the sustainability of non-certified timber for species of trees for which the volumes of certified timber available on the market might be quite small. The new standards include due diligence provisions for objectively assessing the sustainability of non-certified timber along with related judgment standards. Yamaha is moving forward with paper audits based on these standards while also conducting on-site audits pertaining to plantation timber produced in Southeast Asia and China to assess and verify the sustainability of timber procured from these areas.

The ratio of sustainably sourced timber in fiscal 2025 was 69.5% (56.0% being certified timber, both figures are volume ratio^*1), compared with the target of 75%. Going forward, the Yamaha Group intends to expand its usage of sustainably sourced timber through coordination with suppliers while improving the accuracy of and expanding the frameworks for its due diligence activities by training staff to heighten its assessment skills and facilitate surveys.

Cultivation of Quality Timber Through Coordination with Local Communities (Otonomori Activities)

Concerns regarding the sustainability of timber resources have arisen in light of the recent declines in timber resource volume and quality. The Yamaha Group aims to address these concerns through Otonomori (Forest of Sound) Activities, which are being advanced through coordination with local communities for the purpose of developing sustainable forests to ensure that high-quality timber suited to musical instrument production can be secured in a sustainable manner. We partner with government agencies and academic institutions to advance these activities around the world.

1. Initiatives in Tanzania (African Blackwood)

African blackwood (Dalbergia melanoxylon), an important material used for woodwind instruments, is classified as near threatened by the Red List of Threatened Species, which is compiled by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, and a downward trend in the resource volume has been seen in recent years. In 2015, Yamaha began investigations of African blackwood looking at matters such as ecology and forest management status in Tanzania, where this tree is grown. Seeking to create a business model that can utilize African blackwood timber in musical instruments in a sustainable manner, we have been working to introduce cultivation techniques, improve land utilization practices, and develop material usage technologies from the perspectives of forest preservation, musical instrument production, and local communities. These activities have been selected for subsidy programs by various third-party institutions, including as a base of pyramid (BOP) business by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) over the period from 2016 to 2019 and as a Forestry Agency subsidy project in 2015 and 2021. We are moving ahead with these activities with the cooperation of numerous research institutions, NGOs, and other organizations.

Yamaha has been taking part in the regular African blackwood planting activities since 2017. In fiscal 2025, another community joined the effort, meaning that there are now four communities engaged in these activities. Our efforts in fiscal 2025 resulted in our planting approximately 9,000 new seedlings, making for an aggregate total of around 27,000 saplings planted across an area of roughly 13.5 ha over the eight years of these activities. Data on the growth status of the planted saplings, the distribution of wild-grown specimens, and their surrounding environment is being utilized as we work together with local NGOs and community members to make forest management activities entrenched practices within communities in order to help ensure the sustainability of the African blackwood.

Moreover, there are still numerous cases in which African blackwood timber produced in Tanzania cannot be used for producing musical instruments due to flaws such as cracks or breaks. This reality is creating a need for means of using these unutilized materials.^*2 Yamaha is moving ahead with the development of wood flow-molding technology^*3 for making better use of such unutilized materials. These technologies have been utilized to produce composite-material keyboards composed of 70% African blackwood powder, and these keyboards are being used in our TORCH T01 digital piano concept model. By transforming previously unusable resources into materials suited to musical instrument production, we aim to create new value together with benefits for the communities producing these resources while also providing additional incentives for preserving forests.

In fiscal 2025, these forest preservation initiatives in Tanzania won JAPAN WOOD DESIGN AWARD 2024^*4 through the program organized by Wood Design Award. This was the first time Yamaha has received this honor.

• 2 Unutilized materials are those rejected through the careful selection and processing of wooden materials when making instruments.
• 3 Wood flow-molding technology is used to flow and shape wood while retaining its natural characteristics, such as acoustic qualities and texture.
• 4 The JAPAN WOOD DESIGN AWARD was established in 2015 to promote the use of design capabilities to redefine the qualities and value of wood by recognizing superior examples of wood being used in structures, spaces, products, activities, frameworks, and research.

2. Initiatives in Hokkaido (Sakhalin Spruce)

In the past, timber from Sakhalin spruce (Picea glehnii) trees growing naturally in Hokkaido Prefecture was used in Yamaha pianos, and these trees have thus continued to be produced in this area alongside other such valuable tree species as Sakhalin fir and Japanese larch. Approximately 25% of Hokkaido’s plantation Sakhalin spruce population can be found in the Okhotsk region, which is centered on Kitami City, and demand for Sakhalin spruce plantation timber, a major timber product of this region, is expected to grow going forward. Yamaha Music Craft Hokkaido Co., Ltd., which manufactures Yamaha piano soundboards, has signed an agreement with the Okhotsk General Subprefectural Bureau and the town of Engaru, Monbetsu-gun, Hokkaido Prefecture involving the establishment of the Okhotsk Otonomori Sakhalin spruce plantation area. In addition, a comprehensive cooperation agreement has been concluded between Hokkaido Prefecture and Yamaha Corporation. These agreements have shaped efforts to reestablish a stable supply of high-quality Sakhalin spruce timber that is suited for use in piano soundboards and to pass the region’s forestry culture on to the next generation.

As part of the mokuiku^*5 efforts advanced through its Otonomori Activities, Yamaha began arranging castanet making workshops in Japan in 2023. These workshops are held at events throughout Japan, at the Yamaha Ginza Shop, Yamaha Nagoya Shop, Harmony Plaza in the Kakegawa Factory, as well as other locations in areas such as Fukuoka, Kyoto, and Akita. In fiscal 2025, eight such workshops were organized in Japan, giving more than 200 individuals the opportunity to experience castanet making. The workshops used Sakhalin spruce timber produced during thinning as well as unutilized painted maple (Acer pictum subsp. mono) wood. We plan to continue engaging in such an ever-widening scope of locations to give people, ranging from children who will shape the future to adults, the opportunity to become more familiar with instrument production and with trees, especially those for which Hokkaido is well known, such as the Sakhalin spruce as well as the painted maple, which is commonly used for piano materials.

Yamaha is advancing basic research on how to foster Sakhalin spruce timber for use in musical instrument production at both existing plantations and new locations. For example, we are engaged in joint research on the growth and quality of Sakhalin spruce plantation timber together with universities and research institutions and have begun efforts to adapt Sakhalin spruce timber for use in musical instruments.

• 5 Our mokuiku efforts are meant to give people more opportunities to interact with wood to encourage a more proactive relationship between communities and forests.

3. Initiatives in India (Indian Rosewood)

Indian rosewood (Dalbergia latifolia) is a valuable tree species associated with Southern India that is also an important material for musical instrument production used in guitar side and back panels. In 2022, Yamaha commenced surveys on Indian rosewood forests, cultivation, and replacement conditions and on supply chains that can connect trees in forests centered on the Southern Indian states of Karnataka to musical instrument materials. Indian rosewood timber traded on the Indian market sometimes originates from government-owned trees grown in the wild and other times comes from trees raised to provide shade in private coffee plantations. However, natural replacement of trees in forests is not advanced in either case, creating concerns for the sustainability of this resource. Yamaha is looking to roll out full-fledged Otonomori Activities targeting Indian rosewood trees, and we are currently in the process of establishing the collaborative relationships with government institutions that this undertaking will require. In fiscal 2025, we worked to prepare a pilot program for preserving forests and contributing to community development by advancing tree planting tests and examining material use efficiency through an internationally coordinated effort together with NGOs, private-sector companies, and local research institutions.

Environmental Considerations for Timber Resources in Product Creation

The Yamaha Group is proactively utilizing wood cultivated specifically for industrial purposes on planned plantations as well as certified wood, which is properly managed so that the lumbering process does not harm the forest or ecosystems. The goal of measures is to use the high-quality renewable resource of trees on a sustainable basis. In addition, the Group focuses on developing alternative materials that accurately reproduce the superior sound quality of scarce wood materials best suited for instruments.

Products Designed with Consideration for Timber Resources

• 7 Acoustic Resonance Enhancement (A.R.E.) is Yamaha’s proprietary technology for artificially stimulating the same changes in wood that occur during natural aging in a short time to improve acoustic characteristics. Through precise control of temperature, humidity, and atmospheric pressure using a specialized device, the acoustic properties of the new wood can be manipulated to realize a more ideal condition that is similar to the acoustic characteristics of wood materials in instruments that have been played for years. Prior timber enhancement technologies often utilize chemical agent-based enhancement methods. A.R.E., however, does not use any chemical agents in the processing stage. Therefore, this technology has a lower environmental impact.

Environmental Protection and Preservation Initiatives

Preservation of Forests and Natural Environments

The Yamaha Group is committed to the preservation of forests and natural environments, and we are therefore engaged in forestry activities around the world with the goal of regenerating natural forests and recovering biodiversity in a manner that is matched to the conditions of the given regions.

Yamaha Forest Activities in Indonesia

Over the period spanning from 2005 to 2016, Yamaha carried out Yamaha Forest activities in Indonesia. The Company has confirmed the status of forest growth using satellite imagery and estimated the CO2 emissions absorbed by the planted trees. The Company estimates that approximately 42,000 t-CO2 had been absorbed as of 2017, and that an additional 6,000 t-CO2 or more has been absorbed each year since.

Enshunada Coastal Forest Recovery Support

In 2007, Yamaha Corporation signed a supporter of future forests in Shizuoka agreement with Shizuoka Prefecture and Hamamatsu City as part of a program in which companies and organizations that engage in forest-related social contribution activities are recognized as such supporters. Based on this agreement, Yamaha Corporation has been working to support the reforestation of the Enshunada Coastal Forest owned by Hamamatsu City. Specifically, our efforts have included continuously planting saplings in a coastal forest that was seriously damaged by pine weevils. To date, we have planted more than 3,000 trees of species including wax myrtle (Myrica rubra), Ubame oak (Quercus phillyraeoides), Japanese spindletree (Euonymus japonicus), and Chinese hackberry (Celtis sinensis). In recent years, we have been placing particular emphasis on black pine (Pinus thunbergii), which is resistant to pine weevil damage, in our tree planting activities. This tree has been chosen with the goal of reviving forests comprised of tall pine trees in order to restore the forest’s ability to protect against sand and wind.

Chemical Substance-Related Initiatives

To limit the impact of chemical substances on the environment and ecosystems, the Yamaha Group is working to enhance management and reduce usage of chemical substances while implementing measures to prevent leakage.

Water Quality Preservation

The Yamaha Group is building treatment facilities and conducting monitoring and audits to prevent wastewater from business sites from negatively impacting water and related habitats.

At the Toyooka Factory, where the Company conducts the production of wind instruments, wastewater containing chemical substances from the wind instrument production process is detoxified before being released into waterways. Assessments of the impact of wastewater on ecosystems are also conducted. Moreover, the impact of such factory wastewater is evaluated using the bioresponsive Whole Effluent Toxicity method,^*8 and these evaluations have confirmed that the impact on ecosystems is minimal.

• 8 The Whole Effluent Toxicity method is a wastewater management method that evaluates whether wastewater from factories and business sites is harmful to ecosystems by measuring the impact on the existence, growth, and reproduction of aquatic organisms, such as algae, water fleas, and fish in diluted wastewater.

Endorsement of the TCFD and TNFD Recommendations