| September 2000 |
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| Establishment of Ajinomoto Frozen Foods Co., Inc. |
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Under the three-year management plan launched in 1999, Ajinomoto Co., Inc. has been taking steps to become a global corporation in food and amino acid products from its origins in Japan early in the twenty-first century.
Ajinomoto will fundamentally strengthen its frozen food business, and will establish Ajinomoto Frozen Foods Co., Inc. on October 1, 2000. Ajinomoto’s frozen food related divisions will be integrated with Ajinomoto Fresh Foods Co., Ltd. to create a new company with a full range of functions, from development to production and marketing, to carry out the frozen foods business.
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Through the integration of management for development, production and marketing, the new company will have a slim organization without overlapping functions and will allocate personnel effectively, aiming for a simple and speedy decision-making process.
The Marketing Division will unify business, product development and marketing functions. In addition to bolstering sales, this structure will promote market-oriented product development that is close to consumers and the market, and enable flexible and quick response to market changes.
The Research Department will be newly established with reinforcement of R&D staff to take up mid- to long-range themes and refine original technologies. Its goal is to further strengthen development of technologies and new products that conform to market needs.
In its production system, the company will promote optimization of the production lineup and network, not only at domestic plants but also at overseas plants. It will also work to create an even stronger quality assurance system and more efficient management.
The company’s sole sales agent will be Ajinomoto Co., Inc.
While the entire frozen food industry is suffering from low profitability, intense price competition in the market and speed in product development are essential. Meanwhile, despite the effects of lackluster consumer spending over the last year or two, the frozen foods market has achieved rapid growth, and its is expected to continue expanding in the twenty-first century, even while many other markets in the food industry are maturing.
Amid these conditions, the new company will lay out a new system to respond more nimbly and accurately to the market, implement thorough cost cutting in production and carry out aggressive marketing. Through these measures, the company aims to be number-one in the industry in profitability and competitiveness.
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| Profile of the New Company |
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| 1. Name: |
Ajinomoto Frozen Foods Co., Inc. |
| 2. Capital: |
¥4.7 billion (100% by Ajinomoto Co., Inc.) |
| 3. Date of establishment: |
October 1, 2000 |
| 4. President: |
Kiyoshi Kamegai (President of Ajinomoto Fresh Foods Co., Ltd.) |
| 5. Head office: |
16-7, Kyobashi 1-chome, Chuo-ku, Tokyo |
| 6. Business description: |
Research and development, manufacturing and marketing of frozen and chilled foods |
| 7. Annual sales: |
Approx. ¥90.0 billion (fiscal 2000 estimate) |
| 8. Number of employees: |
Approx. 1,400 (including part-time employees) |
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| Ajinomoto Frozen Foods Co., Inc. Directors and Auditors |
| President |
Kiyoshi Kamegai
(President, Ajinomoto Fresh Foods Co., Ltd.) |
| Executive Vice President |
Norio Yamaguchi
(Director and General Manager, Frozen Food Dept.,
Ajinomoto Co., Inc.) |
Managing Director and
General Manager, Production Div. |
Keiichi Nishitani
(Managing Director, Ajinomoto Fresh Foods Co., Ltd.) |
Managing Director and
General Manager, Marketing Div.
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Tadashi Kondo
(Associate General Manager, Frozen Food Dept.,
Ajinomoto Co., Inc.) |
Director and General Manager,
Research Dept. |
Osamu Takagi
(Managing Director, Ajinomoto Fresh Foods Co., Ltd.) |
Director and General Manager,
General Affairs Dept. |
Toshikyuki Ichijo
(Managing Director, Ajinomoto Fresh Foods Co., Ltd.) |
Director and Deputy General
Manager, Production Div.,
Plant Manager, Kanto Plant |
Hajime Mizusawa
(Director, Ajinomoto Fresh Foods Co., Ltd.) |
Director and Plant Manager,
Shikoku Plant |
Yoshito Ito
(Director, Ajinomoto Fresh Foods Co., Ltd.) |
Director and General Manager,
Higashi Nihon Sales Dept. |
Masataka Ohara
(Manager, Household Frozen Foods Section, Tokyo Branch, Ajinomoto Co., Inc.) |
| Director (part-time) |
Takeshi Suzuki
(currently Executive Managing Director, Ajinomoto Co., Inc.) |
| Director (part-time) |
Shin Inada
(currently General Manager, Food Business Strategy & Planning Dept., Ajinomoto Co., Inc.) |
| Auditor |
Sumito Kato
(Auditor, Ajinomoto Fresh Foods Co., Ltd.) |
| Auditor (part-time) |
Yoshiyuki Kogure
(currently General Manager, Internal Auditing Dept.,
Ajinomoto Co., Inc.) |
| Auditor (part-time) |
Shoji Komatsu
(currently Associate General Manager, Corporate Planning & Information Systems Dept., Ajinomoto Co., Inc.) |
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| (Parentheses indicate previous position, except where noted)
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Ajinomoto Frozen Foods Co., Inc.
Background of President |
| Name: |
Kiyoshi Kamegai |
| Date of birth: |
Sept. 7, 1938 |
| March 1962 |
Graduated from Department of Agricultural Chemistry, Faculty of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture |
| April 1962 |
Joined Ajinomoto Co., Inc. |
| July 1989 |
General Manager, Domestic Subsidiaries & Affiliates Dept., Head Office |
| June 1991 |
Director and General Manager, Kawasaki Plant |
| June 1993 |
Director and General Manager, Food Research & Development Laboratories |
| June 1995 |
Managing Director and General Manager, Food Research & Development Laboratories |
| April 1997 |
President, Ajinomoto Fresh Foods Co., Ltd. (present) |
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