Latest News | Japanese Soy Sauce Brand Kikkoman Enters Indian Market

Mumbai, Feb 10 (PTI) Japan's Kikkoman Corporation on Wednesday announced its foray into India with a wholly-owned subsidiary and aims to become the market leader in the soy and Asian sauces category.

The company initially plans to introduce its naturally brewed 'Honjozo' soy sauce in the top metro cities and expand to other cities through e-commerce partners, Kikkoman India Director and India Representative Harry Hakuei Kosato told PTI on virtual interaction.

"India is one of the biggest emerging markets for global businesses and a key driver of growth in Asia. The launch of Kikkoman India will ensure the seamless distribution of our products exclusively created for India.

"It is the first time we will have complete and direct control of all aspects of the business in India, where the emphasis shall be on marketing and sales. As our sales volumes in India are expected to grow rapidly to meet rising demand, we hope to shift production to India when the timing is right," he added.

For the time being, the company will import soy sauce to India, through its subsidiary, he said.

Earlier, the brand was available in India through contract manufacturing with Delmonte.

The company will introduce Kikkoman Naturally Brewed Soy Sauce, which will be competitively priced, followed by the launch of other soy sauce related seasonings for both the foodservice and consumer retail markets, Kosato said.

Representatives from Kikkoman India are meeting with industry executives across the country to inform and educate them about the benefits of using naturally brewed soy sauce.

The soy sauce market in India is very small and according to industry estimates it was at Rs 46 crore in 2019-20 and is growing annually by 10 per cent, Kosato said.

"We are planning to grow the market first and then become the market leader in the soy sauce and Asian sauces category," he added.

Kikkoman has expanded to over 100 countries, with 10 manufacturing facilities globally, distributing its products all over the world.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)