Marubeni Corporation will open a new JPY 850 million ($8 million) aquafeed mill in Tianjin, China through Marubeni Nisshin Feed Co., Ltd, a Marubeni subsidiary (60% owned by Marubeni). The business will open in China, where the marine aquaculture market is growing.
Marubeni Nisshin Feed has been producing high-quality aquafeeds in Japan for more than 60 years and holds the largest share in domestic aquafeed sales volume. The company has been keeping a close eye on the marine aquaculture market in China since 2015 in anticipation of expanding its business into the large Chinese market. Additionally, the company has increased its brand awareness and the reputation of its products in the Chinese market by manufacturing aquafeeds at factories owned by a partner company in China.
As a result, the corporation confirmed the business feasibility and has established Marubeni Nisshin Feed Technology (Tianjin) Co., Ltd. which is the first fully-owned Japanese aquafeed manufacturer in China. Commercial operation and supply are scheduled to begin in or after January 2021.
As of 2019, the production scale of marine aquaculture in China has reached about 6.5 times the production in Japan, based on the China Fisheries Statistical Yearbook, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry (2019). The Chinese marine aquaculture market is expected to expand further in the future, partly due to growing health consciousness and the demand for aquafeed is expected to increase accordingly.
Marubeni Nisshin Tianjin will develop and provide safe, secure and high-quality products by utilizing the manufacturing knowledge and experience of aquafeed built up by Marubeni Nisshin Feed over years of doing business in Japan. The company aims for annual sales of JPY 2.5 billion ($24 million) in the future. Through this business, Marubeni will meet the growing demand of the Chinese market.
“Despite the increasing uncertainty, we regard the 2020s as an era in which the world is undertaking bold changes. We are proceeding with initiatives in anticipation of market changes, such as the establishment of a cattle feed line at the JV factory Nishinihon Feed Co., Ltd. and the start of production at the aquafeed factory in Tianjin, China,” said Kazuhiro Miyauchi, president and CEO of Nissin Maru Beni Foods Co., Ltd.
