Japo Focus : Asahi’s premiumisation and packaging strategies, Kirin’s beer consumption data and more

Japanese brewery giant will focus on driving its premiumisation strategy in 2023, in hopes of
delivering long-term sustainable growth despite the pressures of inflationary costs.
Asahi published its FY2022 full-year financial results earlier this month, announcing an overall
8% growth in revenue to hit JPY2.51tn (US$25.1bn), and 5.9% growth in profits to hit
JPY243.8bn (US$2.44bn).


These positive growth numbers were attributed by the firm to the implementation of its
premiumisation strategy and performance of its international markets.

To assess the relationship between dietary patterns and serum low density lipoprotein (LDL)
cholesterol, so-called ‘bad cholesterol’ by the general Japanese population, a multiinstitutional collaborative cohort study was conducted.


Japanese researchers found that the ‘high bread and low rice’ dietary pattern leads to higher
serum LDL cholesterol for both sexes, while the ‘high confectioneries and low alcohol’ diet
did the same only for men.

Product packaging is important to both relay information and capture consumer attention in
normal times, but when it comes to festivals that involve large-volume sales for family
gatherings, being able to stand out on-shelf becomes all the more important.

In line with the health trends observed by the brand, plans to launch a non-alcoholic option
of its super dry brew in Asia later this year are in the pipeline.

Japan food heavyweight Ajinomoto has highlighted localisation and innovation as key pillars
of its sustainability strategy in the firm’s recently published 2022 Sustainability Advisory
Council Report, with its leaders pledging to take a ‘fundamentally different’ path from other
MNCs.
Ajinomoto established a Sustainability Advisory Council (SAC) as a subordinate body of its
board of directors in April 2021, taking great care to include experts from various fields
including academia, nutrition, public health, developing markets and more.

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