Pulmuone Rises to 3rd Place Among Global Food Companies in S&P Global's 2025 Corporate Sustainability Assessment, Proving World-Class ESG Management

◦ Highest ranking among domestic food companies...maintains global Top 5 for three consecutive years

◦ Proactive governance innovations recognized, including strengthened board independence and renaming of 'outside directors' to 'independent directors'

◦ Technological competitiveness in product-level carbon footprint management and bio-based food safety systems acknowledged

SEOUL – April 15, 2026 – Pulmuone (CEO Woo-bong Lee) announced that the company has achieved its highest-ever ranking of 3rd place among global food companies (as of March 2026) in S&P Global's 2025 Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA), marking a one-spot climb from 4th place the previous year and the company's third consecutive year in the global food industry Top 5.

The CSA, conducted by S&P Global — one of the world's three major credit rating agencies — stands as one of the most authoritative global benchmarks for measuring corporate sustainability. This year's assessment covered approximately 9,200 companies across 59 industries worldwide, of which only 848 companies — representing the top 9% — earned a place in the Sustainability Yearbook. Among the 241 companies evaluated in the Food Products category, Pulmuone was listed as the top-ranked domestic food company, reaffirming its differentiated ESG competitiveness on the global stage.

The result reflects Pulmuone’s broad-based improvements in ESG performance and systematic management capabilities across all dimensions. In governance, Pulmuone earned high marks for establishing a world-class framework built on greater board independence and more transparent decision-making. In the environmental dimension, the company was recognized for advancing its company-wide environmental management system under the 'Eco-Caring' strategy and delivering measurable improvements across key environmental indicators. On the social front, Pulmuone was commended for building a human resource management framework aligned with global standards while strengthening its company-wide food safety system to fulfill its corporate social responsibilities.

Pulmuone is strengthening its sustainability management with a focus on governance advancement and eco-friendly and food tech innovation.

In the governance dimension, Pulmuone has sharpened the quality of board deliberations by implementing a committee-driven pre-review system that allows the Board of Directors to focus its attention on key agenda items. The scope and influence of independent director-led committees — including the Audit Committee, ESG Committee, and Independent Director Evaluation Committee — have been expanded to reinforce operational expertise and objectivity. The company also refined its board evaluation criteria and guidelines, and put in place a framework that ties evaluation outcomes to compensation and re-appointment decisions.

Additional institutional reforms have further strengthened shareholder predictability and procedural transparency, including the introduction of mutual checks and balances in the compensation decision process and the setting of the dividend record date after the dividend resolution. At the Annual General Meeting held in March, Pulmuone amended its Articles of Incorporation to rename 'outside directors' as 'independent directors' and raised the mandatory appointment ratio from one-quarter to one-third of the total number of directors, reinforcing the board's oversight function and independence.

On the environmental front, Pulmuone systematically manages the environmental impact of its business operations under its 'Eco-Caring' strategy. The company has developed a carbon footprint calculation system (Net Zero System) in accordance with the ISO 14067 standard and completed third-party verification for key products including tofu and udon noodles. Full lifecycle data — spanning raw material production through to disposal — is integrated into a product-level management framework, with plans to extend its scope to global operations and partner companies, and to expand beyond sustainable food products into service areas such as sustainable dietary solutions.

Food tech innovation is also continuing to advance in support of securing a sustainable foundation for future growth. The company has entered the commercialization verification stage for its land-based seaweed (gim) cultivation technology, establishing a stable year-round production system, and was selected in 2025 as a participant in a national R&D project by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries — a recognition of the technology's reliability and scalability. Pulmuone is also accelerating the shift toward sustainable raw material production through the development of animal welfare-centered future farms, the construction of robot-based smart vertical farms, and the development of biochar-based low-carbon agricultural models.

With respect to social responsibility, Pulmuone is intensifying its focus on elevating product quality and safety management to global standards. The company has strengthened its quality control capabilities by developing diagnostic kits for pathogenic microorganisms using genome-based molecular diagnostic technology, and has secured a distinctive technological edge through the validation and patent acquisition of a CRISPR-Cas-based diagnostic platform — a next-generation biotechnology. Pulmuone plans to deploy rapid and precise response systems at production and distribution sites, and to advance full-scale commercialization by improving field applicability and ease of use.

"This CSA result is a global, objective recognition of Pulmuone's sustained commitment to sustainability management, rooted in the founding spirit of 'Love for Neighbors and Respect for Life,'" said Lee Jeong-eon, Head of Sustainable Management at Pulmuone. "We will continue to advance Pulmuone's unique values into ESG management that meets global standards, under our mission of 'Creating a Healthy Tomorrow for People and the Earth through Wholesome Food,' and build an ever-stronger foundation for sustainable growth."