{"id":5208,"date":"2026-06-11T15:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/agriture.jp\/?post_type=industry_news&p=5208"},"modified":"2026-06-11T15:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T06:00:00","slug":"rosshell-shokuiku-recognition","status":"publish","type":"industry_news","link":"https:\/\/agriture.jp\/en\/industry_news\/rosshell-shokuiku-recognition\/","title":{"rendered":"An IT Company Provides Off-Spec Vegetable Delivery Free to All Employees\u2014One of the First 333 Companies Certified by MAFF as \"Outstanding Food Education Practice Corporations\""},"content":{"rendered":"

The system development firm Nihon Knowledge Space Inc. (Minato, Tokyo; 189 employees) has been certified for the first time as a Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries \"Food Education Practice Outstanding Organization 2026.\" It is one of the 333 companies certified in the program's first year, evaluated for employee benefits such as delivering the monthly out-of-spec vegetable delivery \"Loss-Heru\" to all employees at company expense. The certification date is April 1, 2026. It is a case in which an IT company's stance of stepping into employee health starting from food came to fruition in the form of making use of out-of-spec vegetables.<\/p>\n

Out-of-spec vegetable delivery to all employees \"at company expense\"<\/h2>\n

At the core of the evaluation is the use of \"Loss-Heru,\" started in September 2024. It is a scheme delivering about 5kg of vegetables (8 to 9 kinds) a month\u2014vegetables that fall outside the spec in shape or size\u2014to employees' homes at company expense. It is designed so all employees can receive them whether they come into the office or work from home, aiming at food support regardless of workplace.<\/p>\n

Out-of-spec vegetables have been rejected from the market on appearance standards even when there is no problem with taste or nutrition. The idea of routing them to employees' dining tables as an employee benefit has a dual effect of reducing waste while also connecting to employee satisfaction.<\/p>\n

\"Food employee benefits\" on three pillars<\/h2>\n

The company's food support is not Loss-Heru alone. Combined with \"Ticket Restaurant\" (introduced January 2023), an electronic meal card usable at more than 250,000 locations nationwide, and a rice-purchase subsidy of up to 10,000 yen a year (introduced June 2025), it is structured to support employees' food through multiple routes. The CEO advocates \"equal meal support for all employees regardless of workplace.\"<\/p>\n

Such food support for all employees also overlaps with the trend of health management.The trend in which Health & Productivity Management Outstanding Organizations 2026 expanded to 26,850 organizations and food became the top theme<\/a>In light of this, designing food-focused employee benefits is growing ever more important.<\/p>\n

The overall picture of the initiative<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Measure<\/th>\nDetails<\/th>\nTime of introduction<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Losheru<\/td>\nDelivering about 5kg of out-of-spec vegetables (8 to 9 kinds) a month to homes at company expense<\/td>\nSeptember 2024<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ticket Restaurant<\/td>\nElectronic meal card (usable at more than 250,000 locations nationwide)<\/td>\nJanuary 2023<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Rice-purchase subsidy<\/td>\nSubsidy of up to 10,000 yen a year<\/td>\nJune 2025<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

How the program and the front lines receive it<\/h2>\n

\"Food Education Practice Outstanding Organization\" is a program started by MAFF, with 333 companies certified in its first year. Certification from an industry not necessarily deeply tied to food\u2014IT and system development\u2014shows that the base of food education is broadening. For employees, out-of-spec vegetables delivered to their homes support their daily dining tables. For the company, it connects to recruitment, employee satisfaction, and revitalizing internal communication. For the growing region, the outlet for out-of-spec produce widens.<\/p>\n

Each company is offering its own answer to the challenge of how to turn out-of-spec vegetables into value.upvege, which powders off-grade vegetables<\/a>As with that, moves that create new uses through processing, not just home delivery, are spreading.<\/p>\n

Impact on readers\u2014a new outlet called employee benefits<\/h2>\n

For food manufacturers and those in charge of HR and general affairs, this case shows a new receptacle for out-of-spec vegetables. If out-of-spec produce that growing regions and wholesalers used to carry comes to be consumed through corporate employee-benefit demand, companies can contribute to employees' health while reducing waste. Food-focused employee benefits tend to be more effective the more competitive an industry is for recruitment.<\/p>\n

Ripple effect on the industry\u2014the multiplier of out-of-spec \u00d7 work styles<\/h2>\n

As remote work takes hold, employee benefits provided by gathering people in one place, like a company cafeteria, have become harder to deliver. The home-delivery type that delivers directly to homes answers that challenge. In terms of stable supply, the option of dried vegetables is also a good fit. Long-keeping and lightweight, dried vegetables are easy to handle as home stock ingredients while keeping delivery costs down. OYAOYA, operated by Agriture, has also converted out-of-spec Kyoto-grown vegetables into dried vegetables, achieving a supply not swayed by weather. Agriture also advances an initiative to deliver vegetables to workplaces and workers in the form of a greengrocer for offices, within the context of health management.<\/p>\n

Making use of them at home<\/h2>\n

When out-of-spec vegetables arrive at home, having ways to use them up prevents waste. Even if the shape is uneven, chopping them means appearance is no concern, and pre-boiling them in bulk and freezing keeps them well. Drying them raises storability further, and they can go straight into soups and simmered dishes. Skillfully rotating the vegetables delivered from the company also leads to loss reduction at home.<\/p>\n

Summary<\/h2>\n

An initiative to provide out-of-spec vegetable delivery to all employees free of charge has been certified for the first time as a MAFF Food Education Practice Outstanding Organization. The fact that it is one of 333 companies in the first year shows that making use of out-of-spec vegetables is becoming part of corporate employee-benefit strategy, beyond mere environmental consideration. Vegetables that had been discarded now support the dining tables of working people\u2014the significance of that cycle being recognized as a program is great.<\/p>\n

Reference<\/h2>\n