Joanna Cosgrove11.01.08
Kikkoman Sets Up R&D Lab in Wisconsin
The Japanese soy sauce company deepens its commitment to the North American market.
By
Joanna Cosgrove
Online Editor
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The new facility is also the latest step in the company’s extension of its global research capabilities, according to Milton Neshek, general counsel secretary and a board member of Kikkoman Foods, Inc. Mick also sits on the board of the company’s new entity, Kikkoman U.S.A. Laboratory, Inc. (KUL). “We have central research in Japan where we employ over 200 researchers (45 with PhDs) and to extend this further we established a lab in Singapore through the University of Singapore and then another one in the Netherlands,” he said. “This new lab is a natural extension for us to cover North America through Wisconsin.”
During a press conference announcing the new laboratory, Kikkoman Chairman and CEO Yuzaburo Mogi echoed Mr. Neshek’s excitement about the strategic promise the new lab held. “The United States is Kikkoman’s most important international market,” he said.
A hallmark of the new laboratory, said Mr. Neshek, is Kikkoman’s intent to extend its research capabilities through “private consulting agreements with selected faculty” from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Outwardly, Wisconsin might not seem like a soy hotbed, however, it’s worth noting that in June Kikkoman marked its 35th year of operation in Walworth. Mr. Neshek pointed out that the facility churned out a whopping 29 million gallons of soy product last year. The production volume, coupled with the food expertise available through the University of Wisconsin is what compelled the company to create this laboratory. “We have the Food Research Institute there which is one of the primary food institutes in the world, not to mention the food science department, the medical school, etc.,” he commented. “There is a great deal of expertise among the faculties.”
Kikkoman has long had roots in Wisconsin. The company’s production facility in Walworth, which in June celebrated its 35th anniversary, was its first outside of Japan and the first Japanese-owned manufacturing facility in the state, and the country.
Mr. Neshek said the new lab will be tasked with setting up “protocols in various areas” as well as “three Fs”: flavors, functionality and fortification. “We’ll be concentrating in those areas, as well as looking for new development, new products and foods that may be discovered through this research,” he said. “Within the three Fs is a quest to search for health products—products that enhance health. That’s what the American consumer is looking for at this point.
“People are looking for healthy alternatives,” he added. “Our research has shown that some products are dead in the water, however, once there’s a change in the product’s make up, through an addition or fortification with healthy ingredients, the sales skyrocket.”
And Kikkoman knows its way around healthy ingredients—in addition to its prowess with soy, the company is also the 100% owner of NY-based dietary supplement and lifestyle product manufacturer County Life.
Kikkoman’s new lab, located in University Research Park, is scheduled to open on January 1, 2009. Spanning 1400 square feet, roughly half of the space will be devoted to lab space with the rest allotted for administrative facilities.
When asked to estimate when the lab’s efforts would reach fruition, Mr. Neshek waxed philosophical. “You never know the pace in which developments can take place,” he said. “Sometimes you can hit quickly, other times it can take years. That’s the nature of research. But we’re 350 years old. We have a lot of patience.”
