| Press Release |
| Ajinomoto Co., Inc. |
| 15-1, Kyobashi 1-chome |
| Chuo-ku, Tokyo |
| President: Kunio Egashira |
| House Foods Corp. |
| 5-7, Mikuriya-Sakaemachi 1-chome, |
| Higashi-Osaka, Osaka |
| President: Akira Oze |
| SHANGHAI HOUSE AJINOMOTO FOODS to launch Japanese-style retort pouched curries in Shanghai |
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September 2002 --- Ajinomoto Co., Inc. (Ajinomoto), and House Foods Corp. (House Foods) announced the launch of a range of Japanese-style curries in the Chinese market. The new products will be launched by SHANGHAI HOUSE AJINOMOTO FOODS CO., LTD. (H & A) that was jointly established by the two companies in October 2001. H & A has around 100 employees. After completing plant construction as scheduled, the company launched full production in September this year, and will begin sales of the new products on October 14. H & A is capitalized at US$9.7 million. Ajinomoto Group has a 70% stake, and House Foods owns 30%. Diets in China, particularly in large cities, have rapidly diversified in recent years in line with the nation’s economic progress. The Chinese are also becoming more conscious about the convenience and quality of foods as well as taste, and demand for processed foods is surging. H & A has modified its product lineup to meet the tastes of Chinese consumers, centered on Japanese-style retort pouched curries but incorporating original blends of seasonings and extracts. Its three initial offerings will be mild, medium hot and hot beef curries. Beef is a favorite among Chinese consumers. The main targets for these curries will be housewives in their 20s through 40s and children. The curries will retail for an easily affordable 6 RMB (approx. ¥90) each. The company will mainly use television commercials, point-of-sale promotions at hypermarkets, supermarkets, and convenience stores, and large-scale sampling distributions to highlight the good taste and convenience of 「Weidudu」Curry. It will also market to restaurants to spread the popularity of the new menu, Japanese-style curries. The initial retail sales target is ¥1 billion. H & A will harness the food processing expertise of Ajinomoto and House Foods to help develop the processed foods market in China while providing local consumers with the high quality and convenience of processed foods developed in Japan. |
| Product/sales overview |
| Brand | 「Weidudu」Curry |
| Product name | Retort pouched curry |
| Product type | Mild, medium hot, and hot beef curries |
| Concept | Featuring curry sauces made in Japan that incorporate slowly fried onions, 15 spices, cooked beef, potatoes, and carrots, sealed instantly in retort pouches to retain full flavor. Just heat and serve on rice to provide a balanced, nutritional meal. |
| Serving size | 200g (per person) |
| Retail price | Around 6 RMB (approx. ¥90) |
| Target consumers | Housewives in their 20s to 40s and their children |
| Sales area | Shanghai (gradually expanding thereafter) |
| Seller | Ajinomoto (China) Co., Ltd. |
| Date of introduction | October 14, 2002 |
| Results of consumer acceptance tests of retort pouched curry in Shanghai | |
| · | Around 87% of participants have heard of Japanese-style curry rice (Table A). |
| · | At House Foods’ curry house chain in China, Japanese-style curry rice dishes are popular among Chinese customers. |
| · | After tasting, more than 90% of participants said that they would like to try the retort pouched curry again, underlining the high level of appreciation of its taste. |
| Table A: Experience with eating Japanese-style curry rice | Table B: Desire to try again | ||
| 37% | Have tried before | 31% | Very likely to |
| 50% | Know about it but never ate before | 61% | Would like to |
| 13% | Do not know | 8% | Not sure |
| 0% | Prefer not to | ||
| Source: H & A. |
| Profile of New Company |
| Company name | SHANGHAI HOUSE AJINOMOTO FOODS CO., LTD. | ||||||||
| Address | Rongle Dong Lu 520 Songjiang, Shanghai 201613, People’s Republic of China | ||||||||
| Top executives | Chairman: Takuzo Kitamura (Executive Managing Director, Ajinomoto) Vice Chairman: Kozo Seto (Director and Manager of Overseas Business Office, House Foods) |
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| Capitalization | US$9,700,000 (@ US$=¥120, just under ¥1.2 billion) | ||||||||
| Shareholdings |
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| Date established | October 31, 2001 | ||||||||
| Production start | September 2002 | ||||||||
| Number of employees |
Approx. 100 | ||||||||
| Facilities area | 15,000m2 | ||||||||
| Scope of operations |
Producing curry and other retort pouched foods in China. |
| Note: Ajinomoto established Ajinomoto (China) in December 1996 as a wholly owned subsidiary that is the holding company for Ajinomoto’s operations in China. The President is Takuzo Kitamura, an Executive Managing Director of Ajinomoto and President of the latter’s International Foods & Amino Acids Company. |
| Reference |
| Profiles of Investors |
| (As of April 1, 2002) |
| (1) Company name | House Foods Corp. | Ajinomoto Co., Inc. |
| (2) Businesses | Manufacture, processing, and sale of foods, others. | Manufacture and sale of processed foods and production and sale of amino acids. |
| (3) Date founded | November 11, 1913 | May 20, 1909 |
| (4) Date incorporated | June 7, 1947 | December 17, 1925 |
| (5) Address | Higashi-Osaka, Osaka | Chuo Ward, Tokyo |
| (6) Representative | Akira Oze Representative Director & President | Kunio Egashira, Representative Director & President |
| (7) Consolidated net sales in year to March 31, 2002 | ¥189,184 million | ¥943,540 million |
| Operating income | ¥6,763 million | ¥49,015 million |
| Net income | ¥3,498 million | ¥31,442 million |
| (8) Capitalization | ¥9,948 million | ¥79,863 million |
| (9) Shares issued (thousands) |
112,378 | 649,683 |
| (10) Shareholders'equity | ¥167,679 million | ¥381,017 million | (11) Net assets | ¥228,784 million | ¥840,152 million |
| (12) Fiscal year-end | March | March |
| (13) Number of employees |
2,807 | 4,820 | (14) Major shareholders and stakes | House Kosan (16.5%) Sumitomo Mitsui Bank (5.0%) Mitsubishi Trust (4.1%) |
Dai-ichi Life (6%) Nippon Life (6%) Nippon Trustee Services Bank Trust Account (5%) |
| (15) Main banks | Sumitomo Mitsui, UFJ, Tokyo-Mitsubishi, Sumitomo Trust | Tokyo-Mitsubishi, Mizuho, Mitsubishi Trust |
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Inquiries in regard to this press release: Ajinomoto Public Relations Department; Tel: +81-3- 5250-8180 House Foods Public Relations Office; Tel: +81-3- 5211-6039 SHANGHAI HOUSE AJINOMOTO FOODS General Affairs Section; Tel: +86-21-5774-3616 |
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