Encountering Bread Yeast
Perhaps you have heard of Seijiro Mizutani, who worked tirelessly to promote the manufacturing and spread of bread.
In Japan, bread culture is said to have originated after The Warring States Period, and it became a food well-known to common people during the Meiji Period.
Next, the Russo-Japanese War broke out in 1904.
Mizutani founded a bakery (which later became Marukisei Bread) in response to the food shortages resulting from political unrest at that time, hoping that bread could save Japan.
Using the business sense and character he was born with, he carried out initiatives such as passing out bread to firefighters dealing with major fires, kept costs low in spite of the large number of competing bakeries that sprung up as a result of rising rice prices due to rice riots, and built up a solid reputation for his store.
Next, he took a trip overseas to gather information about foreign bread markets and further improve bread-making technology in Japan.
Traveling overseas during the Taisho Period was quite a difficult thing to do, and extremely expensive as well, but the success he achieved as a result of this trip was equally massive.
The "mechanized pan production based on scientific principles" which was the cutting-edge method of the time made quite an impression on Seijiro, and it was also during this trip that he first learned about bread yeast.
Attempting to Make the First Yeast in Japan
Bread yeast is made by selecting strains from natural yeasts that are especially suited to bread fermentation and mass-producing them, and bread yeast is key to the mechanization of bread-making.
Seijiro realized this, and he and his adopted son-in-law Kiyoshige attempted to develop the first bread yeast ever made in Japan together.
First of all, Seijiro told Kiyoshige, "Come back after you've learned about the clean culturing method for yeast and mechanized manufacturing."
He sent him to study abroad at the American Institute of Baking (AIB) in the United States so that Kiyoshige could experience what he had seen firsthand.
Kiyoshige showed diligent and a skilled researcher, and the knowledge he gained from these stories formed a strong foundation for the introduction of scientific bread-making methods and the creation of the first bread factory in East Asia, which was built in Osaka.
In 1927, following the first ever successful scientific cultivation of bread yeast in Japan, the Maruki Yeast Research Laboratory was founded.
This revolution in bread-making in Japan was also the moment when the passion of Seijiro and Kiyoshige bore fruit.
Establishing the Japanese Bread Industry Association and Winning the Academia Prize
"For a bread maker, protecting the secret yeast is a matter of course."
In an industry where this kind of information is not usually shared, Seijiro and Kiyoshige allowed free tours of their factory, sharing the results of their work with outsiders liberally.
Sharing information makes more people join you.
In 1927, the "Kansai Bread-Making Research Association" was founded to research the scientific methods for making bread using bread yeast.
With this group as the core, it was expanded in 1930 with the formation of the "Japanese Bread Industry Association."
Upon the recommendation of all the other members, Seijiro was appointed as the first chairman.
Even after he passed away in 1950, Kiyoshige continued researching the yeast microorganism, and The Academic Society of Japan awarded him its Academia Prize in 1962 for his contributions to improving public health through the application of yeast.
Ambitions of Youth and a Great Researcher
Around 1968, as numerous dietary developments unfolded due to the economic prosperity, one man began to have misgivings about the increasing Westernization of the Japanese diet and thought, "If this continue, the balance, culture, and health of our diet will all fall apart."
This man was Norio Kanesugi, this company's representative director.
Just then, an acquaintance introduced him to someone, saying, "Even though he's an amazing researcher, he's been betrayed by some people and fallen on such hard times that he can't really study things the way he would like to."
And that man was Kiyoshige.
Kanesugi was charmed by Kiyoshige's passion for research, technical ability, insight, and character, and was also felt both happiness and a sense of destiny in the fact that both men shared the same idea of "contributing to public health."
For this reason, Kanesugi was determined to support Kiyoshige.
"Resolving people's problems with food can help with food shortages all over the world, infectious diseases, and peace, contributing to population growth."
With this ambition, Kiyoshige and Kanesugi started their collaborative research.
Days of Hardship and Adversity
As Kanesugi raised funds for Kiyoshige's research and living expenses, Kiyoshige pursued technology and knowledge, poring over materials day and night and making do with little sleep so he would have more time to study and understand what he needed to.
All of this effort was worth it when their research bore fruit.
The results were technology for "delivering living yeast into the human body" and "Active Yeast," a product developed using this technology.
However, after all the struggles of developing this technology and applying it to a product, the biggest struggle of all was yet to come.
Since people were not as aware of keywords for health such as "yeast," "enzymes," and "fermented foods" as they are now, there was a harsh perception of supplements, and many people felt that "health foods that aren't medicine are a sham."
However, due to their conviction to "share this product, the technology, and our ideas with as many people as possible," the two men determined to market the product as "health food" in spite of these obstacles.
Inheriting "Passion" and "Technique"
Even though the two men created a marvelous product, days and months went by with no business leads or sales routes for it.
One day, a man who supported the product said, "A product this wonderful should be sold in pharmacies."
This person was the founder of a major pharmacy chain, and even worked as a consultant for a pharmaceuticals manufacturer as well.
Thanks to his assistance, the product broke into the pharmacy marketplace, and once sales were starting to improve, the two partners decided to found a company to spread information about the benefits of yeast and the product to the Japanese people on a larger scale.
At this time, Kiyoshige was already nearly 70 years old, so he decided to entrust the company's management and the future of yeast to his partner and disciple, Kanesugi.
And so, in 1973, the precursor to Nikkenkyo Service, SupaLife Saitama, was founded (the name was changed to Nikkenkyo Service in 1989).
Kanesugi inherited "passion for yeast" and a commitment to "in-house technology" from Kiyoshige, and with these ideals, he resolved to spend his life promoting "Active Yeast," pushing forward with the goal of spreading and developing the product line still further.