Meiji Holdings Co., Ltd.: The Japanese Alliance of Indulgence and Health, from Traditional Chocolate to Wellness Innovations

Tokyo, Japan – Meiji Holdings Co., Ltd. is a major player in the Japanese food and pharmaceutical industry, born from the merger of two historic companies, Meiji Seika (confectionery and pharmaceuticals) and Meiji Dairies (dairy products). With a heritage of more than a century, the Meiji group is renowned for the quality of its products, its constant innovation and its chocolate brands, which have become timeless classics in Japan and are gaining popularity internationally. The group's philosophy is to enrich daily life and promote health through its diverse activities.

A Century-Old Heritage: From Confectionery to Healthcare

The history of the Meiji group has its roots in the early twentieth century:

• Meiji Seika (Confectionery): The origins go back to 1916 with the founding of Tokyo Confectionery Co., Ltd., from an initiative by Meiji Sugar Co., Ltd. to develop the Western confectionery market in Japan. The company quickly began producing caramels and biscuits. A key moment was the launch of Meiji Milk Chocolate in 1926, a bar that would become one of the flagship products and a synonym for chocolate in Japan, keeping very similar packaging to this day.
• Meiji Dairies: In parallel, the group's dairy business began with the creation of Boso Renyu (a condensed milk company), also in 1916, which would later become Meiji Dairies Corporation. The aim was to popularise the consumption of dairy products and improve their quality in Japan.
• Pharmaceutical Diversification: From the 1940s, Meiji Seika also entered the pharmaceutical sector with the production of penicillin and other antibiotics, marking an early orientation towards health.

In 2009, Meiji Seika Kaisha, Ltd. and Meiji Dairies Corporation combined their businesses under a common holding company, Meiji Holdings Co., Ltd., to strengthen their competitiveness and create synergies between their food and health expertise. In 2011, the food and pharmaceutical businesses were reorganised into Meiji Co., Ltd. (for food, including confectionery and dairy) and KM Biologics Co., Ltd. (for part of the pharmaceutical activities, with Meiji Seika Pharma Co., Ltd. managing the rest).

A Portfolio of Well-Loved Chocolate and Confectionery Brands

Meiji is particularly famous in Japan and Asia for its chocolate and confectionery brands, which often stand out for their quality, unique flavours and carefully designed packaging:

• Meiji Milk Chocolate: The iconic milk chocolate bar, a standard in Japan for almost a century.
• Meiji Almond Chocolate / Macadamia Chocolate: Classics combining whole almonds or macadamia nuts with Meiji chocolate.
• Kinoko no Yama (Mushroom Mountain) / Takenoko no Sato (Bamboo Shoot Village): Playful biscuits shaped like mushrooms and bamboo shoots, with chocolate caps, hugely popular.
• Apollo: Small cone-shaped chocolates, with a layer of strawberry chocolate on a milk chocolate base.
• Meltykiss: Seasonal melt-in-the-mouth chocolates (generally for winter), known for their delicate texture.
• Fran: Chocolate-coated biscuit sticks, similar to Pocky (from its competitor Glico).
• Meiji The Cacao: A range of "bean-to-bar" chocolates highlighting the origin of the beans and specific flavour profiles.
• Chocolate Kouka: A range of high-cocoa dark chocolates (72%, 86%, 95%), promoted for their cocoa polyphenols and health benefits.
• Yan Yan: Biscuit sticks for dipping into chocolate or fruit cream.
• Hello Panda: Small cream-filled biscuits, often chocolate cream, with panda drawings.

The group also produces a vast range of other confectionery, snacks, dairy products (milk, yoghurts such as Meiji Bulgaria Yogurt, cheese), infant foods, nutritional supplements and pharmaceutical products.

Commitment to Sustainable Cocoa: "Meiji Cocoa Support"

Aware of the importance of sustainability in cocoa sourcing, Meiji set up the "Meiji Cocoa Support" programme as early as 2006. This initiative aims to:

• Support cocoa farmers: By working directly with producers in the countries of origin (such as Ghana, Ecuador, Venezuela, Vietnam, Brazil, etc.) to improve their farming techniques, bean quality and living conditions.
• Ensure traceability: Meiji strives to establish traceability back to the farms for its cocoa supplies. The company announced that it had reached its goal of sourcing 100% "Meiji Sustainable Cocoa Beans" (beans from areas where support is provided to farmers) ahead of the planned end-of-fiscal-2026 deadline.
• Fight child labour: By taking part in initiatives such as those of the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI) and implementing child labour monitoring and remediation systems (CLMRS).
• Protect the environment and fight deforestation: By promoting agroforestry, distributing shade-tree seedlings and taking part in initiatives such as the Cocoa & Forests Initiative (CFI).

Meiji buys cocoa beans at a premium price under this programme to support these sustainability efforts.

Scale, Recent Performance and Strategy

Meiji Holdings Co., Ltd. (listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange) is a large company. For the fiscal year ended March 2025, the group reported consolidated net sales of JPY 1,154.07 billion (about €7.4 billion or US$8 billion at the current exchange rate, although this figure may vary widely with fluctuations). Operating profit came to JPY 84.7 billion.

The group's long-term strategy, often embodied in multi-year plans (such as the "2026 Medium-Term Business Plan" launched in April 2024), aims to:

• Grow existing businesses: Strengthen its flagship brands in food (including chocolate and dairy) and pharmaceuticals.
• Focus on health and well-being: Develop and promote health-oriented value-added products (e.g. Chocolate Kouka, functional yoghurts, nutritional supplements). The company capitalises on its "Food & Pharma" synergies.
• Expand internationally: Increase its presence and sales in foreign markets, particularly in Asia (China, Southeast Asia) and the United States.
• Keep innovating: Invest in R&D to develop new products and technologies that meet changing consumer needs.
• Sustainability: Integrate sustainability into the heart of its operations and value chain, particularly for key ingredients such as cocoa.
• Manage economic challenges: Navigate unstable raw material costs (including cocoa) and sometimes sluggish consumption in certain markets such as China.

The Meiji Identity: Japanese Quality and Consumer Trust

One of Meiji's strengths lies in its reputation for quality and food safety, criteria that are particularly important to Japanese consumers. Its chocolate products are often seen as a reliable, high-quality treat. The company cultivates this image through rigorous quality control and communication focused on craftsmanship and attention to ingredients.

In conclusion, Meiji Holdings is a diversified and influential player, whose chocolate business represents an important heritage and a key segment of its food portfolio. Rooted in the Japanese tradition of quality, the company strives to innovate, meet expectations for health and well-being, and commit to the path of sustainability, while continuing to offer chocolate pleasures enjoyed by millions of people.