- Where and how big: 1,650 m² in the Farm & Food Village. The theme is sustainable sourcing and recycling of resources, shown through exhibits and hands-on activities.
- Water: Suntory’s “Natural Water Sanctuary” forests and a rain garden, planting that holds rain from roofs and paving and lets it soak slowly into the ground.
- Energy: A restaurant inside cooks with green hydrogen. Vending machines fitted with light, flexible next-generation solar cells (chalcopyrite solar cells) are planned, one inside and one outside.
- Farming: Farm materials made from production leftovers: biochar, Teamoss, a substitute for peat moss, and EF Polymer, a highly absorbent polymer.
- Suntory announced in March 2026 that it is a gold partner of the expo’s project to bring life to the site. It will also install and run the drinks vending machines inside and outside the venue.
Our take
How much the solar vending machines can do is answered by a second release the same day. Suntory and PXP tested one machine for about a year from July 2025 in Sagamihara Asamizo Park, and the solar cells covered about 45% of its yearly power use. On sunny days outside summer the cover rate went above 100%, reaching 153% at best.
In summer, when the machine uses more power, the rate was about 30%. The expo runs from 19 March to 26 September, so July to September falls in that season. The solar cells should work well around the spring opening, while in summer most of the power will have to come from elsewhere. The showcase release itself says a secondary power source will be used alongside the cells.
For a sense of size, Yokohama City’s Tsunagu Yokohama Pavilion sits on a site of about 3,000 m². Suntory’s showcase is about half that and includes a restaurant. The menu, prices and whether reservations are needed have not been announced.
Tips for visitors
- An overview of the pavilions on site is in our pavilions guide.
- “Natural Water Sanctuary” and “rain garden” are our renderings of Suntory’s Japanese names; the English names used on site have not been announced.
Our take
The solar-panelled vending machines planned inside and outside the showcase covered about 45% of their own power in a year-long trial in a Sagamihara park, Suntory said the same day. In summer the figure fell to about 30%, and the later months of the expo fall in that season.