A green factory is one that manages energy consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, water resources, and waste throughout its production processes. In 2018, Hsin Tung Yang’s Dayuan Plant obtained Taiwan’s Green Factory Label, making Hsin Tung Yang the first company in Taiwan’s food industry to receive this certification.

According to the 2025 Hsin Tung Yang Sustainability Report, the Company’s key environmental achievements in 2025 included:

• Completing greenhouse gas inventories across 76 operating locations in Taiwan.
• Reducing greenhouse gas emissions at the Dayuan Plant by 31.19% compared with 2016.
• Saving approximately 786,000 kWh of electricity annually through air-conditioning system improvements.
• Recycling approximately 3,100 metric tons of water, achieving a water recycling rate of 43%.
• Reusing 1,479.71 metric tons of waste, achieving a waste reuse rate of 75.14%.

What Is a Green Factory?

A green factory is not simply a factory painted green. It is a facility that combines a green building with cleaner production practices.

Under Taiwan’s Green Factory Label system, applicant factories must satisfy both green building and cleaner production requirements. These two components are equally essential, and neither can be omitted.

Green building criteria focus on the factory’s performance in areas such as energy conservation, water conservation, environmental quality, and spatial design. Cleaner production, meanwhile, addresses the management of energy, raw materials, water resources, greenhouse gas emissions, and waste throughout the manufacturing process. It also emphasizes continuously reducing the environmental impact of production activities.

The Green Factory Label is not a mandatory certification required of every factory. It is a government-promoted, voluntary labeling program designed to encourage companies to improve their facilities and manufacturing processes while advancing green transformation and ESG performance.

Food manufacturing involves raw-material preparation, cooking, cooling, cleaning, packaging, and refrigeration. These processes consume electricity, fuel, and water while generating packaging materials, food residues, and other forms of waste. Therefore, determining whether a factory has achieved meaningful green production outcomes requires more than environmental claims. Its compliance with established criteria, concrete actions, and verifiable data must also be examined.

Where Is Hsin Tung Yang’s Green Factory Located?

Hsin Tung Yang’s green factory is located in Dayuan District, Taoyuan City. The facility primarily produces pork floss, jerky, sausages, and other food products.

Hsin Tung Yang’s Dayuan Plant obtained the Green Factory Label in 2018. Since then, the plant has continued implementing energy monitoring, equipment improvements, greenhouse gas inventories, water recycling, and waste reuse initiatives.

Obtaining the label was not the end of the plant’s environmental efforts. The plant continues to maintain records, inspect its equipment, and track the results of each improvement initiative.

Understanding Hsin Tung Yang’s Green Production Through Data

1. Greenhouse gas emissions at the Dayuan Plant decreased by 31.19% compared with 2016

In 2025, greenhouse gas emissions at Hsin Tung Yang’s Dayuan Plant were approximately 2,603.198 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent lower than in 2016, representing a reduction of 31.19%.

Carbon dioxide equivalent, or CO₂e, is a standard unit used to express the impact of different greenhouse gases on a comparable basis. This figure indicates that the Dayuan Plant’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2025 were approximately 68.81% of its 2016 level.

2. Air-conditioning system improvements save approximately 786,000 kWh of electricity annually

Following improvements to its air-conditioning systems, Hsin Tung Yang is estimated to save approximately 786,000 kWh of electricity each year, representing an energy-saving rate of 41.6%. In other words, electricity consumption after the improvements is approximately 58.4% of the previous level.

Through equipment upgrades and energy monitoring, the plant records the electricity consumed by its air-conditioning and production equipment. When the system detects abnormal electricity consumption, personnel can inspect the relevant equipment and adjust its operating settings.

3. The water recycling rate reached 43%

In 2025, Hsin Tung Yang recycled approximately 3,100 metric tons of water, achieving a water recycling rate of 43%.

One metric ton of water is approximately equal to 1,000 liters. Therefore, 3,100 metric tons is equivalent to approximately 3.1 million liters of water. Recycled water must be treated and tested according to its intended use. It can only be reused in suitable processes or operations after meeting the applicable water-quality requirements.

4. The waste reuse rate reached 75.14%

In 2025, Hsin Tung Yang reused 1,479.71 metric tons of waste, achieving a waste reuse rate of 75.14%.

This means that for every 100 kilograms of waste included within the reporting scope, approximately 75.14 kilograms entered a reuse process. The remaining 24.86 kilograms were managed according to the characteristics of each waste category.

The plant first sorts waste by type and then applies the appropriate method, including recycling, reuse, or other suitable forms of treatment.

How Are Food Safety and Environmental Management Addressed Together?

Food factories must first comply with food safety, cleanliness, and hygiene requirements before implementing water recycling, equipment energy-efficiency improvements, and waste reuse measures.

Hsin Tung Yang’s Dayuan Plant manages these areas through five approaches:

1. Recording electricity consumption across equipment and production processes.
2. Upgrading air-conditioning systems and other energy-consuming equipment.
3. Identifying greenhouse gas emission sources and calculating their emissions.
4. Testing the quality of recycled water before reusing it for suitable purposes.
5. Sorting and reusing waste according to its category.

Each action must be properly documented so that changes can be compared across different years. Environmental performance should be demonstrated through records and measurable results, rather than described simply as “eco-friendly.”

How Is a Green Factory Relevant to Our Daily Lives?

Just as factories use data to manage energy and water resources, individuals can use numbers to track their own environmental actions. For example:

• Using one fewer disposable beverage cup each day can reduce annual consumption by 365 cups.
• Bringing a reusable shopping bag once a week can reduce annual consumption by approximately 52 plastic bags.
• Organizing and checking the food in the refrigerator once a week results in 52 food inventories each year.

When environmental actions can be recorded, we can understand how much we have accomplished and set our next improvement target.

From Food Safety to Green Production

Since obtaining the Green Factory Label in 2018, Hsin Tung Yang’s Dayuan Plant has continued using data on energy, water resources, greenhouse gas emissions, and waste to monitor its environmental performance.

Key achievements in 2025 included:

• Reducing greenhouse gas emissions at the Dayuan Plant by 31.19% compared with 2016.
• Saving approximately 786,000 kWh of electricity annually through air-conditioning system improvements.
• Achieving a water recycling rate of 43%.
• Achieving a waste reuse rate of 75.14%.

A green factory is more than a certified facility. It represents an ongoing process of recording, comparing, and improving environmental performance. While safeguarding food safety, Hsin Tung Yang also seeks to present every step of its green production journey through transparent and verifiable data.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1: When did Hsin Tung Yang obtain the Green Factory Label?

Hsin Tung Yang’s Dayuan Plant obtained the Green Factory Label in 2018, making Hsin Tung Yang the first company in Taiwan’s food industry to receive the label.

Q2: How much did Hsin Tung Yang reduce its greenhouse gas emissions in 2025?

In 2025, greenhouse gas emissions at Hsin Tung Yang’s Dayuan Plant were approximately 2,603.198 metric tons of CO₂e lower than in 2016, representing a reduction of 31.19%.

Q3: How much electricity does Hsin Tung Yang save each year?

Following air-conditioning system improvements, Hsin Tung Yang’s Dayuan Plant is estimated to save approximately 786,000 kWh of electricity annually, representing an energy-saving rate of 41.6%.

Q4: How much water did Hsin Tung Yang recycle?

In 2025, Hsin Tung Yang recycled approximately 3,100 metric tons of water, equivalent to approximately 3.1 million liters, and achieved a water recycling rate of 43%.

Q5: What was Hsin Tung Yang’s waste reuse rate?

In 2025, Hsin Tung Yang reused 1,479.71 metric tons of waste, achieving a waste reuse rate of 75.14%.

Q6: What is the source of the data presented in this article?

The figures in this article are sourced from the 2025 Hsin Tung Yang Sustainability Report. Depending on the indicator, the reporting scope covers either Hsin Tung Yang’s operating locations in Taiwan or the Dayuan Plant.

Q7: Is applying for the Green Factory Label mandatory?

No. The Green Factory Label is a voluntary program promoted by the government. It is designed to encourage companies to improve their facilities and manufacturing processes while advancing green transformation and sustainable business development.