Condiments and seasonings market in Japan - statistics & facts

While small companies tend to maintain a straightforward product line focusing on one segment of the market, large manufacturers lead with a multifaceted portfolio including sauce variations, spice blends, and menu-specific seasonings. Additionally, the industry is tightly connected to the food manufacturing industry, with large condiment companies doubling as processed food manufacturers.

Flavors of Japanese food

Even though the food market offers a selection of domestically produced and imported condiments, the traditional food culture (washoku) emphasizes the sparse use of seasonings. Instead, Japanese cuisine embraces the concept of seasonality by taking advantage of the flavors of agricultural and marine produces in season. In this concept, seasonings are added to enhance the natural flavors of food. In particular, sugar, salt, vinegar, soy sauce, and miso are considered the basic seasonings in home cooking. Other additional ingredients used to modify the taste of dishes in Japan include cooking wine (mirin), sake, and items enhancing savory flavors (umami) such as fish sauce and clear stock (dashi).
Strong spices on the other hand are mostly used to cover pungent smells that are present in raw fish. However, mild spices like black peppercorns imported from neighboring trade partners and grated ginger have been established as common ingredients in Japanese kitchens.

The taste of food trends

Washoku is considered a healthy diet focusing on nutritional balance and natural flavors of produces. However, with the growing popularity of foreign cuisine, dietary changes are also impacting the condiments market. Initially assimilated from seasonings influenced by Chinese cuisine, the selection of modern products is supplemented by Western-style sauces and spices, further blurring the lines between table condiments, seasonings, and processed foods. Cheese and mayonnaise have become popular flavors for snack foods but are also used as toppings on Japanese dishes like sushi, onigiri, and savory pancakes (okonomiyaki). Curry has been reinvented as a vegetable and meat sauce to cater to the Japanese palette, with curry rice persisting as a consumer favorite. With the rise and spread of food trends, augmented by media and social networking services, condiment manufacturers are expanding their product lines by regularly introducing new dry topping flavors (furikake), retort pouch sauces, and instant seasonings based on trending dishes.

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