“Without food, there would be no clothing, no shelter, no art, no culture. Food is the most important pillar supporting human life.”

NISSIN FOOD PRODUCTS founder Momofuku Ando saw firsthand how people suffered from food shortages after the war. His conviction led to the invention of the world’s first instant noodles and the birth of NISSIN’s famous CHICKEN RAMEN. He said, “Peace will come to the world when there is enough food.” Shoku-soku se-hei, or the Japanese phrase representing this idea, is one of our enduring values and the enduring origin of our activities.

Since 1958, the NISSIN FOODS Group has continued to ponder what is useful for humankind and society, and we have contributed a better world by satisfying dietary needs. Our history is one of sustainable growth through solutions to social issues, which we now call CSV management. The term EARTH FOOD CREATOR, as in our Group Philosophy, expresses our desire to contribute to the world and its people by creating food, the basis of all life.

Why does the NISSIN FOODS Group take on the challenge of Planetary Health and Human Well-being? Solving these challenges will be extremely difficult, but we believe we can do it. Our belief is based on our strength in food technology.

Planetary Health means using food tech to ensure a stable meat supply and reduce environmental impact. Many initiatives are already underway, one of which is our research in cultured meat, which is attracting attention as a sustainable food source. In August 2017, we began a joint research project with the University of Tokyo, continuing the unprecedented challenge of achieving thicker steak meat. In May 2023, we succeeded in developing a plant-based eel product. We have reproduced the texture, appearance, and flavor of broiled eel without using any animal-derived ingredients. We aim to create sustainable food systems in Japan and overseas that preserve rich food cultures.

Under the concept of Human Well-being, we pursue Optimized Nutri-Dense Meals, a technology addressing health and nutrition issues head-on. We launched the KANZEN MEAL series in 2022, offering the perfect balance between taste and 33 essential nutrients. Making full use of processing technologies and umami ingredients cultivated in the instant noodle business, we produced taste on par with so-called regular food, without the distinctive harsh or bitter taste characteristic of nutrients. This business embodies one of our Enduring Values: Eat wisely for beauty and health. And we aim to improve well-being through food by offering solutions that answer issues related to modern dietary habits.

I believe that creating social value through these types of efforts will create economic value in parallel. Helping create sustainable societies will also lead to the sustainable growth of the NISSIN FOODS Group.

Our recent performance has been strong, with FY 3/2024 net sales of 732.9 billion yen (up 9.5% year on year) and core operating profit of existing businesses of 80.6 billion yen (up 33.9%), both record highs. We set a target level of 80 billion yen in core operating profit of existing businesses by FY 3/2031 under our mid- to long-term growth strategy, achieving what we projected to be a 10-year target beginning in FY 3/2022 in only three years.

In this and other ways, the NISSIN FOODS Group has achieved remarkable growth over the past several years. But if we become complacent, growth will grind to a halt. Our founder pursued a philosophy of always aiming higher, knowing there is no limit to growth, immediately setting his sights on the next peak once one goal was achieved. When we were in sight of our previous goal in the previous fiscal year, we established new milestones of 1 trillion yen in revenue, core operating profit of existing businesses of 100 billion yen, and a market cap of 2 trillion yen.

In 2024, we took the first step toward this new goal, defining four management keys to boost our growth potential.

The first of these keys is to make a leap ahead in our global business. The growth of overseas operations was remarkable in FY 3/2024, with overseas operations accounting for more than 50% of total profits. But the global market is enormous, and we have yet to make our presence felt. We intend to strengthen our global branding further in promising markets and increase our presence in every region by raising production capacity.

The second of these keys is to develop new business around the KANZEN MEAL series of products. Our immediate goal is to establish and expand the KANZEN MEAL brand, growing to 7 billion yen in FY 3/2025 and 10 billion yen in FY 3/2026. In addition to packaged products, we plan to expand our BtoBtoC business, leveraging collaborations with retailers, food service companies, and food manufacturers in other fields. The NISSIN FOODS Group pursues collaboration with insurance companies and others in different industries to create a variety of touch points for multi-vector development in Nutrition Optimization Technology.

The third key is to delve deeper into food tech development. As I mentioned, food tech is the NISSIN FOODS Group’s greatest strength in our pursuit of Planetary Health and Human Well-being initiatives. Continuing to take on the challenge of future food, including cultured meat and plant-based foods, we intend to open up new possibilities for food.

The fourth key is to strengthen initiatives related to EARTH FOOD CHALLENGE 2030 (EFC2030). EFC2030 is the Group’s environmental strategy and an indispensable initiative for achieving Planetary Health. Treating environmental issues passively and simply accepting our fate makes no sense. We encourage employees to reject passiveness and to act as leaders in the food industry.