BIER Member Spotlight: Mitsunori Odagiri

Name: Mitsunori Odagiri | Sustainability Senior Manager

Company:  Asahi Group Holdings

Connect with Mitsunori Odagiri on LinkedIn

Welcome to our series aimed at spotlighting the individual leaders within BIER member companies and stakeholder organizations. Learn how these practitioners and their companies are addressing pressing challenges around water, energy, agriculture, climate change, and what inspires each of them to advance environmental sustainability in the beverage sector and collectively, overall.

Briefly describe your role and responsibilities and how long you have worked with your company. 

I joined Asahi Group Holdings as a Sustainability Senior Manager in 2022. Since then, with a focus on environmental topics, my work has been around the development of group sustainability strategies and roadmaps as well as the monitoring of progress in close collaboration with regional headquarters, Asahi Global Procurement teams, and other relevant functions.

How has the company's sustainability program evolved over the years, and what are your specific priorities for 2025?

In the early stages, our focus was on establishing governance, setting baselines, and aligning with global frameworks. Over time, our approach has matured to embed sustainability into our core business strategy, supply chain, and innovation agenda.

For 2025, our priorities are centered on thought leadership and strategic refinement.

We are updating and sharpening our sustainability roadmaps across Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions and recycled PET. This includes aligning with the latest science-based targets and ensuring our plans are both ambitious and actionable.

This evolution reflects our belief that sustainability is not a side initiative: it’s a driver of innovation, risk management, and long-term growth.

How do you feel being a BIER member will help you successfully address the key areas you are addressing in 2025? 

The in-person BIER meetings, which I’ve had the privilege of attending twice, are especially invaluable. They bring together some of the most forward-thinking sustainability professionals in the beverage industry, creating a space for open, candid dialogue and deep collaboration. These sessions go beyond information exchange; they foster a shared commitment to raising the bar across the sector.

Through BIER, we gain access to harmonized methodologies, emerging best practices, and peer insights that directly inform how we shape and evolve our own strategy. The ability to benchmark, challenge assumptions, and co-develop solutions with global peers helps ensure that our roadmap is not only ambitious but also grounded in practical, scalable action.

In short, BIER strengthens our ability to lead with clarity, collaborate with purpose, and continuously refine our approach to sustainability in a rapidly evolving landscape.

Share a recent accomplishment of your company’s sustainability initiatives/achievements you are most proud of and why.

One of the most significant and proud accomplishments of Asahi Group Holdings in recent sustainability efforts is the official approval of our Net Zero targets by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) in June 2024.

This achievement makes us the first company in Japan to receive SBTi approval for both short-term and long-term targets, including FLAG. Our targets are aligned with the 1.5°C pathway of the Paris Agreement, and include:

• A 70% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030 (vs. 2019),
• A 30% reduction in Scope 3 emissions by 2030,
• And full Net Zero across Scopes 1, 2, and 3 by 2040.

What makes our targets especially meaningful is not just the ambition, but the rigor and transparency behind them. The validation process involved detailed emissions calculations, cross-functional collaboration, and alignment with global standards. It also reflects our commitment to translating complex climate science into actionable, measurable goals that can be understood and embraced across our global operations.

If you had one superpower that could be used to radically accelerate and scale sustainable best practices, which one would it be, and how would you use it? 

Sustainability often lives in the realm of technical jargon, fragmented metrics, and long-term projections. If I could have a superpower, it would be the ability to bridge that gap and turn lifecycle assessments, carbon accounting, TCFD, TNFD, or biodiversity risks into stories that spark understanding and action. Whether I am speaking to a factory manager in Japan, a finance lead in Europe, or a community partner in Oceania, with the superpower, I would tailor the message to what matters most to them, without losing the integrity of the data.

This power would not only accelerate alignment across functions and regions but also empower more people to become champions of sustainability in their own context. Because when people truly understand the “why” and “how,” they’re far more likely to act - and that’s how transformation scales.