Leading Japanese savoury snack producer Calbee satisfies growing appetite for snack foods

Fresh, crisp and flavour-rich snacks made with high-quality natural ingredients – this is the philosophy of leading Japanese savoury snack producer Calbee. As Asia-Pacific’s rising economies drive the global demand for snack foods – a market forecast to reach US$166 billion by 2020 – the company famous for such brands as Jagabee and Kappa Ebisen is ready to take on the region’s changing tastes.

“Calbee is a growing company,” says Akira Matsumoto, chairman of the board and CEO. “In 2015, our net sales reached US$1.8 billion, driven by our strong business performance domestically and abroad.”

Founded in Hiroshima in 1949, Calbee achieved success in 1964 with the creation of Kappa Ebisen – crunchy shrimp-flavoured crackers resembling French fries widely known across Asia-Pacific. The company has since invented a number of popular snack products such as Jagabee potato fries, which come in a range of flavours, BunBun snow pea crisps, and pizza potato chips.

“Calbee’s key to success is research and development because our strength lies in our products,” Matsumoto says. “Our core competence is the texture of our products. It’s what differentiates us from the competition, and we are No 1 in that regard.”

Already a market leader in Japan’s domestic snack market, Calbee is also a growing snack brand in China where it maintains processing facilities in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Shantou, Qingdao and Yantai. The brand seeks to expand its presence in China further through local distribution partners who have strong market knowledge and who maintain modern and traditional sales channels – an expansion strategy similarly targeted for Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam.