Kuraray, a leader in the specialty chemicals and polymers business, today announced its continued support of sharing Japanese culture with the Houston-area with its sponsorship of the Japan Festival Houston, hosted April 18th and 19th. This event is in its twenty-second year and its hosted at Hermann Park.

“Kuraray’s continued commitment to the Japan Festival Houston as well as the Japan-America Society of Houston has continued to teach people in the community about the rich history of the United States and Japan as well as share and grow our understanding of the two cultures,” said Patsy Yoon-Brown, Director of the Japan-America Society of Houston. “We want each family who visits the festival to grow in their knowledge of Japan and maybe expand their knowledge by taking language classes or even visit.”

Kuraray’s commitment to sharing Japanese culture can be seen in their efforts throughout the Houston area. With their current sponsorship of the Samurai: Way of the Warrior exhibit at the Houston Museum of Science, involvement with the Japanese Business Association and continued sponsorship of exhibits at other museums and galleries, Kuraray’s desire to give back can be seen at a corporate and personal level.

“We proudly sponsor many Japanese cultural events in the Houston area, but what I think is most important are all the people within Kuraray who take time to volunteer and share their experiences. Many of our ex-pats have taken time to teach children in the classroom, speak at events and provide leadership within other volunteer organizations to share both the values of Japan as well as the values of our company,” said George Avdey, President and CEO of Kuraray.

Within the last five years, Kuraray has continued to grow with expansions of two of our plants, the new construction of a poly-vinyl alcohol plant and the acquisition of DuPont’s Vinyls plant making Kuraray an employer of over 400 employees in the Houston area alone.

“We are growing immensely, and our impact on the Houston community will too, with our volunteer efforts as well as our economic growth. This, while maintaining our commitment to improving the environment through our products and our people are what make Kuraray both unique and exceptional.”

For more information on the JapanFest, visit: www.houstonjapanfest.org and be sure to visit the Samurai:Way of the Warrior exhibit at the Houston Museum of Natural Science made available by support from Kuraray.