Investor Update

Oct 14, 2025

Slides

Good morning. Thank you for joining Ajinomoto Group's business briefing. Meeting on Latin American business despite your busy schedule. This is Kaji from IR. At the outset, I'd like to introduce today's speakers representing Representative Executive Officer, President & CEO Mr. Nakamura, Executive Officer, General Manager of Latin America, President of Ajinomoto do Brasil Ms. Yamamoto. Hello. Nice to have you. Those two other speakers, Yamamoto is joining from Brazil. Other than that, we have participants from Ajinomoto. Mr. Shiragami, Representative Executive Officer and Executive Vice President; Mr. Sasaki, Executive Officer and Senior Vice President, General Manager, Corporate Division; Executive Officer and Senior Vice President, General Manager, Food Products Division; Masai, Executive Officer and Senior Vice President, General Manager, Bio-Fine Chemicals Division; Maeda, Executive Officer and Vice President in charge of Finance and IR; Mizutani, Executive Officer in charge of Diversity and HR; Kayahara, Executive Officer in charge of Sustainability; Ono, nice to have you. Those are the seven participants in today's proceedings. First, Mr. Nakamura will make a presentation on Latin American regional strategy followed by growth. Strategy of Ajinomoto, Brazil from Yamamoto. The Q and A session for the whole session is scheduled for an hour and 30 minutes. Today's material is uploaded on our IR. Website, so please refer to them. Today's content will be recorded, including the Q and A session, and will be uploaded on our IR website. I would like to have your understanding, so we would like to start the meeting. Nakamura-san, please. Thank you very much for taking time out of your busy schedule to attend Ajinomoto's business briefing. I will first discuss the business activities of our group in the Latin American region and our strategy for future growth. I would like to share three points with you today. Have you changed the slide? Okay, good. First, in Latin America, we operate a broad range of businesses in food and bio-fine chemicals and we have achieved solid growth based on this strong business foundation. With COP30 taking place in Brazil this November, we will further accelerate our sustainability initiatives centered around Aminoscience, creating positive impact while accelerating business growth. Looking forward to 2030 and beyond, we will pursue new business opportunities alongside expanding existing operations, strengthen intangible assets and global collaboration to achieve full further growth. Through these efforts, we will realize the Ajinomoto Group's aspirations and ASV leading to sustainable enhancement of the corporate value. This is our organizational structure in Latin America. Under the umbrella of Ajinomoto do Brasil, we have branches in Argentina and Colombia. Ajinomoto Peru oversees branches in Chile and Bolivia as well as Ecuador. Sepacol and Ajinomoto Mexico are all covered by the Latin American regional headquarters. The regional headquarters overseeing all of Latin America is located in Brazil, the key hub within the area. It works in coordination with business and corporate divisions in Tokyo to formulate and advance regional strategies for the entire area. Our group operates under this regional headquarters system for governance and manages operations by distinguishing between matters advanced globally and those decided locally. Now, a brief introduction to Ajinomoto do Brasil and Ajinomoto Peru which play central roles in Latin America. First, this is Ajinomoto do Brasil. With four factories and approximately 3,000 employees, it is the largest base within our group in Latin America. Established in 1956 with a history of approximately 70 years, our company focused on the postwar resumption of Japanese immigration to Brazil and made a full-scale entry into the Latin American region, expanding the business together with Brazilian economic growth. Initially, we imported and sold the product Ajinomoto, but starting in the 1970s we began production using local sugar cane. Subsequently, we expanded our product portfolio to align with local food cultures and needs in the food sector. This includes the flavor seasoning Tempero Sazon and powder beverages, various amino acids for pharmaceuticals and foods, agricultural materials produced using amino acid fermentation byproducts, and amino acid lysine preparation for cattle such as Agipro L, doing a wide range of business in food and bio-fine chemicals. The photo in the lower left shows. Our R&D members. Having local development teams in each country is one of our strengths. Ms. Yamamoto, who succeeded me as President of Ajinomoto do Brasil and head of the Latin America Division in April 2025, will explain our growth strategy and specific initiatives later on. Next is Ajinomoto Peru. With approximately 1,500 employees in Peru, it is the second most important base in the region after Brazil. It began selling the product Ajinomoto in 1968 and developed flavor seasonings like Donya Gusta, tailored to the local culinary culture that favors chicken-based soups, and in the 2000s established instant noodle culture in Peru with Ajinomen. Alongside the company's growth, we've contributed to the development of Peru's food culture. In recent years, our business performance expanded strongly, including the export. The current President, Mr. Iwao, is a Japanese Brazilian born in Brazil. After joining the R&D department at Ajinomoto do Brasil, he worked in the Overseas Food Division in Japan (Tokyo) and was seconded to Ajinomoto Indonesia and then served as head of the Food Business Division at Ajinomoto do Brasil. Drawing on his diverse regional business experience, he assumed the role of President of Ajinomoto Peru in 2022 where he continues to demonstrate strong leadership in the Latin American region. We have developed and grown both our food and bio-fine chemicals business primarily in Brazil and Peru, as shown in the slide. In the food business, we manufacture and offer products from Umami seasonings Ajinomoto to those rooted in local food culture. As explained earlier, the Brazilian Tempero Sazon and Donya Gusta in Peru, instant noodles like Ajinomen tailored to local needs. We are also expanding into neighboring countries in bio-fine chemicals. We manufacture and sell various products utilizing aminoscience including amino acids for pharmaceuticals and foods. Furthermore, Brazil serves as a key global manufacturing base for MSG and amino acids. Beyond these business developments, we will further expand product categories in the food business, grow in neighboring countries and further accelerate our bio-fine chemicals and convergence businesses in Latin America. We believe there remains significant overall growth potential. Latin America is a vast region, and while logistics and infrastructure pose challenges, our company has built a robust distribution network. As shown here, we have manufacturing bases in core countries Brazil and Peru, from which we export and sell products to neighboring countries, expanding our business throughout almost all of Latin America. As mentioned earlier, Brazil also serves as an important global amino acid manufacturing base, supplying bulk products to the entire Ajinomoto Group. Sales in Latin America as a whole have already reached ¥125 billion. We will steadily expand our business in Brazil, where the scale of the business is large, while further accelerating the rapid growth in Peru and promoting growth in neighboring countries such as Bolivia and Colombia in order to achieve high business growth throughout Latin America. Why has Ajinomoto achieved such high growth in Latin America? One reason is our robust business foundation and overwhelming presence in the region. In particular, in Brazil and Peru, our product market share and awareness have been high thanks to our expansion to date in Brazil. Our flagship flavor seasoning Tempero Sazon has a market share of approximately 70% in Peru, our Umami seasoning Ajinomoto and instant noodles Ajinomen have nearly 100% market share, and our flavor seasoning Donya Gusta also has an extremely high share of approximately 80%. Ajinomoto Umami seasoning has an extremely high awareness rate of 93% in Peru, and Sazon in Brazil has an extremely high awareness rate of 96%. Leveraging this strong brand equity, we will accelerate the development of new products. Umami, one of the strengths of our food business, has high penetration in areas where rice farming and fishing is common and thus rice and fish are consumed. Like ASEAN, our Group has developed its business in Latin America based on this food culture. Latin America has a population similar to ASEAN and a large economy, but our Group's sales in Latin America are still only about one-third of ASEAN, and we believe the region still has great potential. In addition to the growth potential in Brazil and Peru, we also see significant room for growth in neighboring countries. Furthermore, compared to ASEAN, many countries in Latin America share common languages and food cultures, making it easier to pursue cross-regional initiatives than in ASEAN. Currently, we are focusing on basic seasonings such as the umami seasoning, Ajinomoto, the previously mentioned Brazilian Tempero Sazon and Peruvian Donya Gusta. However, in recent years with the economic development of each country, the need for more convenient meals has increased and sales of Ajinomen instant noodles made in Peru have grown strongly, with exports also increasing significantly. We will strengthen our expansion in the area going forward, including new initiatives such as the frozen food business we launched in Brazil. To realize this growth potential, we will rapidly develop new products, services, and solutions that meet local needs, further strengthen our relationships with customers, and accelerate the organic growth of our existing business. We will also leverage the strengths of aminoscience to maximize the synergies between food and bio-fine chemicals, thereby further expanding our business domains. This growth will be supported first and foremost by strengthening our valued intangible assets, brand equity, human capital, and digital transformation. Furthermore, as for deepening global collaboration, when I was in Brazil I felt that disseminating information such as cutting-edge R&D information from Tokyo to each region would lead to greater innovation on the ground and I am eager to work on deepening such collaboration in each field. Using our regional headquarters as a hub, we will evolve our business operations into more agile and effective ones while also contributing to the creation of local innovation. By rapidly implementing these initiatives, we will further expand our business in Latin America and contribute to the growth of the entire Ajinomoto Group in Latin America. We are linking our food and bio-fine chemical businesses to put ASV initiatives into practice such as improving nutrition, supporting agriculture, and reducing environmental impact through products and services that utilize aminoscience and we believe that our challenge in Latin America are important initiatives that will lead to value creation for the entire Ajinomoto Group. Going forward, the entire company will continue to work together to evolve ASV management, realize our purpose, and strive for business growth. Now I would like to ask Yamamoto-san to tell us more about Ajinomoto do Brasil. Yamamoto-san, over to you. Thank you very much. I would like to introduce you to Ajinomoto do Brasil and its growth strategy. Hereafter I will refer to Ajinomoto do Brasil as ABR and Ajinomoto Peru as APU. Once again, let me self-introduce. My name is Naoko Yamamoto. I joined Ajinomoto in 1991 and since then I have been responsible for the food business in and out of Japan. After two overseas assignments, I served as Head of Human Resources at Ajinomoto and Vice President of AGF in 2020, and this year I assumed the role of President of ABR and Head of the Latin America Division. By the way, in 2022 I was in HR, and in this IR Day presentation I talked about HR Capital. Here is what I will be introducing today. First, I will provide an overview of ABR as a whole, followed by our core businesses, and finally the intangible asset that supports our growth. First is ABR Company Overview. As was mentioned by Mr. Nakamura earlier, ABR was established in 1956 and will celebrate its 70th anniversary next year. Sales amount to approximately ¥100 billion with 3,000 employees. We operate in three business segments. Right top, the food business that sells various seasonings and food products to retailers and food services. The second is the food ingredients and agriculture business, which sells products like MSG through B2B channels and sells co-products generated during the manufacturing processes as fertilizers. Bio-fine chemicals is the last one, which sells amino acid and amino acid-derived products to B2B customers. This is a map of South America and Brazil. I'm in Sao Paulo. We have bases in Brazil, Colombia, and Argentina. In addition to our headquarters in Sao Paulo province, we operate four factories. The breakdown of sales is as follows. You can see on the left is the pie chart. The food business accounts for approximately 50%. The food ingredients and agri accounts for 30%, and bio-fine chemicals business at 20%. Compound annual growth rate since FY 2018 is about 8%. We aim to realize sustained growth through FY 2030. Earlier it was mentioned one characteristic of ABR is that it serves as a supply base for MSG and amino acids that supports the entire group. Using abundant Brazilian sugarcane as raw material, we stably produce and supply high-quality product, thereby contributing to the entire group. From here I will introduce each of ABR's businesses. First, the food business. As you can see on the slide. Our food business covers a wide range of product. Left hand side, the seasonings business centered on Tempero Sazon, which has a strong foundation and has been growing steadily for many years. Next is the processed food, instant soups, and midge. The powdered beverages and supplement and frozen foods, where we anticipate new growth as well as commercial products. Right bottom is we have a wide. Range of products for the food services. We are expanding our business not only in Brazil but also in Argentina and Colombia where ABR has basis and export our products to countries throughout Latin America. Regarding sales in the food business, we have maintained growth as you can see from FY 2018 CAGR of 8% to 9% is seen here. As you can see from the graph, the dark red seasonings account for primarily large share and this segment is currently our growth driver. Going forward, we aim to achieve even greater growth by expanding into other areas as well. Next, in order to help you visualize our products, we will introduce Tempero Sazon, a key product within our seasonings portfolio. About Tempero Sazon via video. Brazil is a country of continental dimensions. From north to south, traditions change and with them the flavors on the table. Every corner of Brazil brings its unique cuisine shaped by history, culture, and local ingredients, making food not just nourishment but a true expression of identity across all these diverse cuisines. Ajinomoto do Brasil brings products that match every flavor tradition, adding even more taste and umami. Tempero Sazon is the biggest product of the company and over the last 35 years the brand has become the most loved seasoning in the country. With over 90% of brand awareness and more than 46 million purchasing households, the brand continues to reinvent itself and conquer new consumers every year, achieving a new record by capturing over 76% of Brazilian households. As the absolute leader of the seasoning category, Tempero Sazon sells 10 units per second in Brazil. From Sazon to our entire portfolio, Ajinomoto products can be found all across the country, reaching 99% of weighted distribution in every region and every type of store. Thanks to our strong distribution network and trusted partnerships with distributors, partnerships that not only fueled our growth but also theirs, with many of them becoming powerful, profitable leaders in the market. Today, Sazon products are manufactured in-house at a large scale in our Limeira plant located in Sao Paulo countryside area. Sazon's strength outpaces the seasoning segment and is a love brand in our country, currently ranked within the top 20 most chosen brands in Brazil considering all FMCG categories, growing six positions versus last year and reaching the best result in history. Sazon continues to expand its portfolio based on consumers' new demands. How did you find it? Did you get a sense of what? Tempero Sazon is about? Let me explain more about Tempero Sazon using the slides. Tempero Sazon was launched in 1988 and is a flavor seasoning loved by Brazilians. We take pride in this seasoning that it has been used for generations by our customers. Its use is being passed down within families and has become deeply integrated into Brazilian food culture. Brazilian food culture has been influenced by various ethnic groups including Portuguese, African, Indigenous, Italian, and Japanese. It features diverse regional characteristics brought by the immigrants. For example, on this right-hand side you can see the photograph. Feijoada of black beans and pork is very popular and this menu is often eaten at homes. Sazon is used in these menus. Tempero Sazon is widely used in many of these dishes, adding umami flavor and color. Frequently, they are used in diverse menus in Brazil. Tempero Sazon is the strength of our food business. It was mentioned in the video as well. Market share is approximately 70% and brand recognition is 96%. In 1996, its love-themed commercial became a hit and since then Sazon has become strongly associated with the theme of Amor or love in Portuguese. This has made Sazon more than just a seasoning. It symbolizes love for family and loved ones. This element has become an emotional benefit for Sazon, leading to stronger consumer support. On the right bottom you can see in recent years, Sazon has also sponsored the reality show program Big Brother Brazil, a national phenomenon in the country and that has also contributed to maintaining its high recognition and market share as well as capturing users in the younger generation. Next is the distribution network which is also one of our strengths and the capability to bring things and products to our customers. We cover all of Brazil with approximately around 80 exclusive distributors. Brazil has very vast land. It is 22.5 times the land area of Japan with approximately 8 logistics network is not very developed and the tax. system is very complex, and that makes. Nationwide business expansion is challenging. Taking approximately 40 years, we have collaborated with those distributors and partners to establish a system capable of delivering products throughout Brazil. Thanks to this, our distributors love and treat our product as if they were their own, and as a result, provide exceptionally attentive service throughout Brazil. We firmly believe that our current position is entirely due to the cooperation with these distributors. Here I would like to talk more about the future. Building on the strengths as I outlined, I will explain how we plan to grow our food business going forward. This is on the vertical side, the product category, and on the horizontal side you can see the customers. More to the left bottom means existing. So, existing category, existing customers. I have already mentioned about Tempero Sazon. We have a very strong position, and in this area we can propose new cooking applications, introduce products with more distinctive concepts, and also introduce products with more accessible, affordable concepts to attract new customers, taking on our strong position. We also want existing customers to use our products in more cooking scenarios. For example, as a new cooking proposal, we have seasonings for making risotto with leftover rice. For those with a stronger focus on cooking, we offer the herb seasonings. Last year we launched a smaller size of Sazón as a more affordable option. That's what we launched last year. Through efforts and initiatives like these, we were able to capture customers we couldn't reach with existing products alone, such as the younger generation with strong sustainable values. Furthermore, we would focus on leveraging the existing businesses, using the cash generated from strong existing businesses. We want to acquire near new categories. Last fiscal year we launched Frozen Gyoza. Thanks to all support, it is currently performing very well. Going forward, we plan to expand the category and aim to handle a wide range of Ajinomoto frozen food products. Furthermore, as a symbol of the integration of food and bio-fine chemicals, we will strengthen the supplement sector, including Amino Vital. At the end of last fiscal year, we launched Amino Move supplement targeting middle-aged to senior women. Moving forward, we will thoroughly nurture the products we have launched, provide new value to society while contributing to food and health in Brazilian society, and we would like to accelerate our growth. Next, I would like to introduce our food ingredients and agribusiness. In the food ingredients business, we sell MSG to processing customers and products for improving texture and flavor on a B2B basis. We sell functional products and we also supply these products to our global affiliates. Agribusiness. On the right-hand side, like I mentioned in MSG, we utilize co-products generated during the MSG production process to sell products such as fertilizers relevant to this. This is the Biocycle in which we are engaged in. Let me introduce this Biocycle. In Thailand and Vietnam this is conducted but at Ajinomoto do Brasil, similar to these countries, we are also engaged in the Biocycle. In Brazil, sugarcane is fermented to produce MSG. Once the fermentation finishes and amino acids are extracted, the remaining liquid known as the co-product still contains a lot of nutrients and we would use that and sell that as a fertilizer product to local farmers. Local farmers would grow sugarcane using this fertilizer and that sugarcane then becomes raw material for MSG, therefore creating a cycle. Through these efforts, we are reducing greenhouse gas emission, GHG emission, and from the upstream, we are able to ensure a stable supply of sugarcane and therefore contribute to building a sustainable food system. Words alone may be difficult for you to understand. We have prepared a video which explains this. Please enjoy the video. We are here in Laranjal Paulista in the countryside of Sao Paulo State at one of Ajinomoto's factories in Brazil. Looking ahead to the next 100 years, companies from different industries already recognize the importance of building sustainable supply chains that minimize environmental impact and have low greenhouse gas emissions. Here, Laranjal Paulista plant produces the umami seasoning Ajinomoto, which is made from sugarcane. In addition to production with lower GHG emission, co-products from the production of Ajinomoto are reused as fertilizer for sugarcane, which is the raw material. We call this sustainable system a Biocycle. First, let us introduce how we are reducing GHG emissions from production. The sugarcane is squeezed and its juice is used as a raw material for Ajinomoto fermentation. After the sugarcane is squeezed, the bagasse, a fibrous residue left after extracting juice from sugarcane, is used as fuel for a biomass boiler burning only sugarcane bagasse and wood chips to provide the necessary heat for Ajinomoto production at Laranjal Paulista plant. It is eco-friendly. Here is the breakdown of fuel types currently in use. The use of LNG has nearly dropped to zero, and this shift has significantly contributed to reducing GHG emissions. Next, we introduce the measures being taken to reduce GHG emissions from raw material. Furthermore, the production process generates co-products that are transformed into fertilizer used to grow sugarcane itself or sold on the market, closing the production cycle of monosodium glutamate. Since fertilizer generates less GHG emissions compared to chemical fertilizers, its use by farmers helps reduce overall GHG emissions. Some of the sugarcane cultivated with low emission practices is reused as a raw material for Ajinomoto. Our fertilizers, recognized as an organic mineral fertilizer, are loved by farmers. This co-product-based fertilizer is used to grow sugarcane, which Ajinomoto then purchases and processes as raw material for the next Ajinomoto or utilizes as biomass fuel, creating a sustainable food system that reduces GHG emissions. Apartment. As we hereby introduced, Biocycle is part of our production system and Ajinomoto do Brasil with other activities is collaborating with the Ajinomoto Group's sustainability goals. We work towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions continuously. Thank you. In addition to the Biocycle initiative you just saw, there's one project that Brazil is engaged in and I would like to introduce you to that. A press release was announced at the end of March. We are participating in cooperation with the Japanese government assistance program for Brazil and this is a verification study for the recovery of degraded pasture. Verification YKK Brazil has pasture. Last week I just visited there myself. It's 1.7 times the area of the Yamanote line and we are testing our products on this degraded pasture. We are now verifying the effectiveness of our products and through this project we hope to demonstrate the effectiveness of our products, thereby further contributing to the environment and society, which is ASV, while growing our business. Next, I would like to introduce our third business, which is bio-fine chemicals business. This business offers supplements and IV fluids and amino acid is used in this and also amino acid derived products such as moisturizers used in cosmetics and surfactants used in detergents as well as value-added feed for livestock is what we offer in this business. Next slide please. This graph is from a survey conducted by consulting firm Bain & Company. The red bar represents people whose environmental concerns have increased over the past two years. This shows that environmental concerns are growing globally. Upon looking at this result, we saw an increase particularly notable in Brazil. Against this backdrop of changing awareness among people in Brazil, we want to contribute to solving climate change issues with solutions that utilize aminoscience and at the same time we believe that this is an opportunity to accelerate business growth. Now, based on that backdrop, from here on I would like to talk about Agipro L, which leverages aminoscience, and also introduce sustainable solution examples. As you all know, GHG emissions related to cattle rearing account for approximately 9.5% of global GHG emissions and this is an urgent issue as one of the causes of global warming. Agipro L is a product that can contribute to this. Let me explain the product overview. In raising dairy and beef cattle, lysine is necessary. If lysine is given as it is, it's broken down by microorganisms in the rumen of the ruminant cattle and the nutrients do not reach the small intestine. However, by utilizing our proprietary granulation technology, lysine can pass through the rumen and reach the small intestine as a nutrient. Using Agipro L, this allows you to optimize feed such as soybean meal which was previously given to cattle and also contributes to reducing CO2 generated during feed cultivation and procurement as well as N2O generated from manure. Although this varies depending on the farming conditions, it is possible to expect a reduction of 1 ton of CO2 per cow per year as well as reduction in feed costs of approximately $100 currently to the major dairy and meat factors in Brazil. We are promoting understanding of the Agipro L and collaboration efforts with these companies are progressing steadily. By strengthening our collaboration with these partners, we hope to achieve even greater results towards reducing GHG emission. Brazil is rich in nature and both agriculture and livestock farming are very thriving. At 6%, it exceeds 6% of the country's GDP. In the advanced countries it is below 1%. Engaged in these initiatives in Brazil is something we find to be highly meaningful. By offering solutions, we can make contributions to a sustainable food system. Hence we would like to dramatically grow our business while making these contributions. Now relevant to this, I would like to talk a little bit about the COP30. As you know, COP30 will be held in Belem, Brazil. It's the entrance of Amazon in November of this year. We plan to introduce Agipro L and our efforts in the recovery of degraded pasture verification study. We would like to communicate to the world that we have concrete solutions that are effective in combating global warming. There are many stakeholders that will attend and since it's a great opportunity, we would like to also strengthen our network and tie that to business opportunities. Please. This will be my final part and I would like to introduce our efforts regarding intangible fixed assets. Let me start by introducing our high speed development system. Nakamura-san cultivated high speed development system in the electronic materials business and has spoken a lot about this. I'm sure many of you are familiar with this. When he was the President of ABR, this initiative started. It has taken foot not only in development but also in corporate and also in the factory. This initiative and system is being leveraged. One example is our efforts to develop frozen gyoza which we will introduce today. As mentioned in his presentation, this high speed development system is about anticipating needs and acting first and starts by gaining a deep understanding of the market and consumers in Brazil. We have identified that the restaurant industry is facing labor shortages. Therefore, the needs for convenient food is on the rise. Also, the development of cold chains for transporting frozen foods have made advancement. In Brazil they eat meals, side dishes and rice which is well balanced. Due to this, we have found potential in frozen gyoza. In order to deliver it to the market as quickly as possible, we have considered various options, but we have decided to use our group's own assets. We're going to start with import and also consider export. A test sales is conducted at some of the cities. While our initial strategy was to expand into restaurants primarily serving Japanese food, we have found that the delicious taste and ease of preparation of frozen gyoza will have widespread acceptance. We are now expanding our efforts to incorporate gyoza into local food culture as an appetizer in restaurants serving local food and also in the supermarket. We are selling this in the deli section and we would like to expand channels going forward. These efforts are supported by the corporate culture that we have right now, which is one of the intangible assets based on the spirit of fail fast and learn faster. This is common in ABR. We would like to take on challenges without fear and work as one team throughout the entire value chain. These kind of product launches usually take about one year or even longer. However, in this case we were able to achieve this in six months and we believe that our established high speed development system is a major strength of ABR and we will continue to proactively take on new challenges. The next topic is about corporate branding. On the left side of the slide, there is a graph, and this shows the difference between awareness of Sazón and the number of people who know that Sazón is actually a product from Ajinomoto do Brasil. 96% of the people are aware of Sazón. Only half are aware that it's an Ajinomoto do Brasil product. People who know Sazón but don't know that this is from Ajinomoto. If we tell them that this is from Ajinomoto, the likability actually increases, which is encouraging results. That's why we would like to, through our communication, link the two. This is an effort that we have been continuing. There is still room for improvement. However, for Sazón advertising, we are proactively conducting corporate branding so that we can be able to create an ideal relationship between the Sazón awareness and the fact that the product is from Ajinomoto do Brasil. In fact, last year's survey, I said earlier that the people who know Sazón is from Ajinomoto do Brasil is 51% this year, but last year it was 46%. Although it's a few percentage points in a short period of time, I think we are seeing some effects through communication and advertising, and we would like to further strengthen this going forward. This will lead to further strengthening our existing businesses, and it will also accelerate new business. The next topic is about digital transformation. Ajinomoto do Brasil began its digital transformation efforts in 2017 with all employees actively participating with ownership. On the right-hand side, this is automating the factory, and in the middle, this is using data. In other words, data-driven management. Through these initiatives, we are promoting digital transformation. On the left-hand side, where it says e-commerce, I would like to introduce this a little bit more. In 2022, Melpedido, a B2B platform, was launched. We believe that this is a unique initiative. Like mentioned earlier, the distributors would use this platform to distribute products to the retailers. Distributors would use this platform to sell not only our products but other commodities and food products. There's still room for growth in this area, but the transaction volume in fiscal 2024 is expected to expand 6.6 times compared to the previous year. We would like to further promote this platform. As the final topic for intangible asset, I'd like to introduce our human capital initiatives. As you all know, human capital are one of the most important assets supporting our business, and we are undertaking a variety of initiatives to develop them. One is a global talent rotation initiative. We have employees seconded from Brazil to other countries where they can share the experience and know-how they have gained in Brazil, and they also learn from the new local area to take back to their home countries. This initiative not only leads to individual growth, but it also promotes knowledge sharing globally and also strengthens DNI so that we can strengthen our power and also strengthens our competitiveness. We currently have 12 colleagues from Brazil working in various countries including Japan and Thailand, and next month one other member will be seconded to Malaysia, so there will be a total of 13 colleagues. Today we would like to introduce two of them who are seconded in Thailand, and this is Normando, and the other member is currently working in Japan and her name is Natalies, so we would like to do a brief self-introduction by them and would like for them to talk about what kind of experience they are gaining from their new destination. Let us start off with Normando-san. Thank you. Hello everyone. It's a great pleasure to be here today. My name is Normando Felio. I have been working with Ajinomoto for almost 25 years, building my career across Sales, Marketing, Digital data science, and Supply Chain Management in Brazil. Since July last year, I have been based in Thailand. In Thailand, I have two positions. First is Deputy Managing Director of Ajinomoto Sales Thailand, and the second position is Director of Solution and Ingredients SNI at Ajinomoto Thailand. Here in Thailand, I support the evolution of our distribution system in traditional trade, which we call TT & Food Service. We are also focusing on talent development to build capable, future-ready teams. What I learned in Brazil has been essential, and Thailand has added new perspectives that I intend to bring back. Ajinomoto do Brasil's route to market and distribution system model shows how long-term partnership and disciplined execution support sustainable growth. When I return, three strategic initiatives I aim to implement are: number one, agile product development through cross-functional teams, accelerating innovation; number two, light asset expansion with local partnership enabling rapid testing and scaling of new categories; and number three, integrate B2B strategies in food service, SNI, and bio-fine chemicals to create stronger synergies and create value propositions. This international experience is broadening my perspective and enabling me to contribute to Ajinomoto's global growth agenda by connecting markets, optimizing operations, and developing talents to drive innovation creation. Together, I believe we can continuously build sustainable growth and a stronger connection across marketing. Thank you very much. Normando-san, thank you very much. The next member is Nadalisan. Please go ahead. Hi everyone, good morning. My name is Naoko Yamamoto and it's a pleasure to be here today talking to you. I started my career at Ajinomoto do Brasil in 2009 right after my graduation. It was my first job and over the past 16 years I have grown with the company. I began in the technical center where I spent 10 years focusing on the development of our core technologies, and after that I moved into sales and business roles. Since 2022 I've been based at Japan headquarters where I'm in charge of the global production strategy for the amino acids business. This role has deepened my understanding of customer values, market trends, and the strength of our production sites and business globally. When I return back to Brazil, I will bring this broader and more integrated perspective. My priorities will be three: first, enhance the collaboration between Brazil and global teams to share best practices and accelerate innovation. Second, expand the production capacity and portfolio by leveraging insights from our customers and global network in both business and technical areas, and third, support the development of a strong customer-focused and globally oriented team to drive value creation. As a result of my experience from the technical roles to global strategy, I feel ready to drive value creation through broader perspectives and strategic insights. I'm confident that by working together we can further advance our position in Brazil not only as a strong local player, but also as an even more integrated and competitive part of our global business. Thank you very much. Thank you. Naoko Yamamoto with Ono-san I have online. Come online conversations and when I returned to Japan I met Naoko Yamamoto and the two seem to be full of energy while they are working and I find them to be highly reliable and these are initiatives that we would like to further reinforce going forward. Finally, let me conclude my presentation with a comment. As the General Manager of Latin America, Ajinomoto do Brasil has both food and bio-fine chemical business functions. By maximizing these strengths and by utilizing aminoscience power, we will lead the growth of Latin America as a whole. Furthermore, together with Ajinomoto Peru in Peru where business is growing rapidly, we will lead each country and neighboring countries and companies by pursuing synergies. Through these activities, we will contribute to the well-being of the people and society of Latin America and ultimately from Latin America to the entire world. This will lead to increased corporate value for the Ajinomoto Group. This concludes my presentation. Thank you very much for your attention. Thank you very much. Nakamura-san and Yamamoto-san. We would like to now move into the Q and A session. First is how to do the Q and A. If you have questions, please press the hand raising button in the screen. We would like to designate the. Ones who is going to ask the question, please unmute and ask questions. Those participants from overseas, you are able to ask questions in English. We have simultaneous interpretation service if we. Have too many participants who want to ask questions. We may not be able to entertain all of them. We would like to start the Q and A. Any questions, please raise your hand. Please. Please press the button. Raise your hand. That's the first question. Sasaki-san from Mizuho Securities, please. Thank you. I have one question to Brazil. Ajinomoto's seasonings, flavor seasonings and foods business, as was mentioned by the President. I. Think the scale is low, but it is now going to expand the scale with ASEAN. What is the difference between ASEAN and your business? I think in ASEAN you are using the route sales, and in Brazil you have strong partnership with AT and over. Distributors that you have mentioned. I think these two. What are the differences in the strategies? Going forward, especially for the food and seasonings? If you look at the margin flavor. Seasonings, ASEAN is more than 19%, but. Latin America is 3 to 5 points reduced. This business for Brazil, Ajinomoto will be able to improve your profitability. At this point of time you. Have difference. Because this comes from the business model difference, it may be difficult. In order to reduce the scale difference here, that may be one of the strategies. Could you elaborate on this point? Yes, Sadisan, thank you very much for the question. First of all, ASEAN and Brazil. Brazil's history of flavor seasonings is a bit different from ASEAN. I think Latin America, they started with Ajinomoto and then they went into the flavor seasonings. Sorry, that was ASEAN. ASEAN started from Ajinomoto and then started to flavor seasonings and moved on to other seasonings. In Latin America the situation is different. Peru, yes, it started with Ajinomoto, but in Brazil the business started from the Tempero Sazon, which is a flavor seasoning, and centering on that, and that was a driver of our business in Brazil. Compared to ASEAN, Latin America, where most population is there, Brazil, we have a different business model or the history. I think it started out from the growth of the flavor seasonings. To menu flavorings. I think people would not do most of the cookings in different ways. Menu flavorings is not growing so much, but rather they went into a more convenient type of food like noodles and frozen foods. Therefore, Masai-san, would you like to supplement? Maybe Yamamoto-san, if you want to provide some supplementary comments, please do so. Masai would like to talk about the seasonings. I think there lies a difference in the area, land area compared to ASEAN countries. Brazil is very vast. They have Amazon jungles. I think similar sales models and the sales teams are not able to reach the retailers. This was a successful business model in ASEAN, but it was difficult in Latin America. Thirty years ago, Ajinomoto started to rely on reliable distributors around the region. I think compared to Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, ASEAN countries, I think we have lower own the salesperson. I think this is a very efficient sales and distribution model. In addition to that, it was mentioned that because this is a wide land of area, logistics is quite difficult. We had to have a longer and a strong relationship with the distributors, including the logistics. That is one feature of Brazil. As was mentioned by Mr. Nakamura, Peru, we have a business model close to ASEAN. Within Latin American countries, I think there lies differences from the processed food perspective. Already we have been in this business. Ajinomoto is a noodle which is growing and this is being exported to neighbor countries. Because of the capacity issue, we had a bit of problem. Peru, last month we have now newly established noodle facilities, new jewel producing facilities. We are able to enhance this business. In addition, Argentina, Peru, and Paraguay, I think they have different, different food cultures. We would like to think about the most suitable expanding strategies. Together with Yamamoto, I went to those countries and did the market survey. That's all from me. Thank you. One confirmation from myself. That means that you have new teams being launched. The margin itself for new business would. You have higher margin or are you. Going to improve the margin in existing product? Can we expect improvement of margin in existing product? Yes, this is Nakamura for the margin improvement. Yes, Remedas is a factory that we are going to be seeing and we want to improve the existing business so that we can make improvement of margin. For processed food, especially frozen food outside Japan, I think they could, I think, capture more margins. From both sides we will be doing our most efforts. Thank you. Thank you very much. Sajiku next from. Goldman Sachs. Please go ahead. Excuse me, it was Miyazaki. Hello, I'm Miyazaki from Goldman Sachs and I have two questions that I would like to ask. This could be overlapping or is an extension of the previous question by Sajisan about sales in Peru. Because of historical background, you said it's very similar to ASEAN. Up until the phase of menu seasoning, how far have you made progress? Are we in a favorable condition where we can expect improvement going forward? Looking at a few graphs until 2030, the growth curve seems to be going upward. Through expansion of existing business, how much can we expect? In addition to that, how much more new business would you need to generate? If you can please explain about that as the first point, that would be very much appreciated. Number two is about the operating margin. In the last few years, I understand that the margin has improved. Is that really the case? Because of new trial, is it actually flat? In the next few years, is the OP margin going to improve with the new, for example, fermentation process and or perhaps due to the scalability of processed and frozen food? In looking towards 2030, I see that you are foreseeing improvement. What is your assumption in the next couple of years in terms of OP margin perspective? Thank you for the question. To your first question about the sales and your question about Peru. In the case of Peru, Ajinomoto itself is a big product. As well as Ajinomen and Donya Gusta, which is a flavor seasoning, these three are drivers. Recently, Ajino Shirao, which is Shoyu or soy sauce, is growing. These are the four core businesses that are driving the sales. Whether if there's room to grow until menu seasoning, yes, we believe so. However, as mentioned earlier, Brazil and also. Peru. Sales is not that significant when it comes to menu seasoning. The number of product is still yet insufficient. We would like to have positive expectation. In terms of leapfrog, I think there's a trend towards convenient food, and that's why we have started frozen food in Brazil. In Peru, we have started studies so that we can be able to pursue growth in the processed food. Now to your second question about the margin. Looking at the recent margin, appropriate price increases have been conducted so that we can be able to secure profitability. This is one thing that we have communicated, and also continuous cost reduction, introducing new technology, and also removing redundancies is what we would like to pursue to pursue growth. Gyoza is imported from Thailand and is sold. In terms of improving profitability, if there is enough volume demand, we would like to domestically manufacture gyozas in Brazil so that we can be able to increase profitability. That would be it from myself. Masai-san, would you like to add anything? Yes, I, Masai, would like to make one point. I'm not able to disclose the details today. However, in fact, both Brazil and Peru efforts are being made. Tremendous efforts are being made to reduce costs, and I may be repeating myself. I cannot share with you the details, but cost reduction measures will prove to be effective in the next one to two years. This is where we have positive expectations on. Sorry that my answer may be lacking the details. Thank you. Just one more point. For me, sales has been growing stably, and I think your plan is that it will continue to grow stably. Due to scalability, can we foresee improvement in OP margin, or is it the cost reduction efforts that is going to impact profitability? I think it's both. Cost reduction efforts and also increasing distribution and also expanding region. It's both growing sales and also cost reduction effort. Okay, clearly understood. Thank you very much. If you would like to jump in and make further explanation, that's fine. No, I think enough has been said, so I'm fine. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Music. Next, we have a question from overseas. McLeish-san from Sanford C. Bernstein & Co., please. Hi, good morning. Thanks very much for the presentation. I just wanted to ask a question about the importance of the USA as an end market for Ajinomoto Latin America. Can you give us a sense of how big the U.S. market is in terms of revenue and future growth for your Latin American business? It'd be helpful if you could talk about the key products that you're selling to the USA and how this business is being impacted by tariffs. Many thanks. Thank you very much for your question. Markerson, I think your question was for overall America business, not just Latin America. Latin America and North America, we have different. Yes, I think important. The question. Can you clarify the question? The question was about exports from Ajinomoto do Brasil to the U.S. and Ajinomoto Peru to the U.S. How important is that? Thank you very much. Yes, Brazil, yes, it is local consumption, local production. For bio-fine chemicals, I think to around the world, Brazil is exporting. This is a production hub. From Brazil to us, yes, we do have exports to the United States from Brazil. We did not anticipate Trump tariff, and that's a very big impact, especially amino acids and part of the co-product and cosmetics products. This is impacted, but that is converted or transferred to other countries. I think cosmetics and co-products are exported to other countries so that we. Are able to reduce the risk, minimize the risk. That's how globally done bio-fine chemicals is headed by Mr. Maeda. Maeda-san, can you comment on this? Yes, thank you very much for your question. Can you go to page seven of Yamamoto-san's presentation? You can see export to Brazil, from Brazil to others. I think bio-fine is partial and part of that goes to us. That is the raw material for cosmetics. Amino acids for pharmaceuticals and so forth, partially of them. I think this is going to be impacted by Trump tariff. A basic policy for us is, of course, we want to pass through the prices. We are now negotiating with a customer. That's a long-term reduction of cost. Of course, from a short time we have to pass through the prices. To the customers and reduce our cost on our side. That's for short term. That's helpful. Next, Igarashi-san from Daiwa Securities. Please go ahead. Thank you for appointing me. My name is Igarashi from Daiwa Securities. Hello. Just one point from me and I'd like to hear from Yamamoto-san. In Latin America, namely Brazil, is there a change in needs or change in consumer behavior that you see within the food culture? What kind of change and needs would you like to capture now? In the frozen Gyoza you talked about convenience and also time shortening needs. If there's any other needs in which you have positive expectations for in the future, please share that with us. Thank you for the question. Igarashi-san, your question is in Brazil if there's any change in needs for the food culture. Did I understand your question correctly? As Igarashi-san mentioned, people are looking for convenience and time shortening methods when it comes to cooking. Although we don't have many offerings, there are light snacks and light meals in frozen food that are growing significantly. Looking at the past five years, it has been growing double digits. Going forward, if you take a look at Euromonitor, it is expected to grow also at double digits. This is an area that is going to grow for sure. Along with that, even if we say easy cooking, I think people's preferences are also diversifying. Some people, for example, if it's authentic Japanese food or authentic ethnic food, there's needs. We believe that there's going to be diversification of needs. On the other hand, we're seeing inflation and high interest rates from a macroeconomic stance. There are consumers that are concerned about the economical situation. I think something that is economically rational will also be important. This is a terminology that we use internally and we have three levels like small, medium, and large. We will offer premium price point as well as affordable price point items so that we can be able to capture diverse needs. Thank you very much. Now relevant to that, I'd like to ask another question. Needs for time shortening cooking. I understand that in Japan there's a needs by consumers to be able to cook in a shorter period of time. Do you see that trend in Brazil? Is there a social reason why there's a needs for people to want to shorten cooking time? The social backdrop and the changes that we see, it's similar to Japan. Population is declining and aging and we have smaller families in the metropolitan area. Property land is increased, rent is increasing and people are now commuting from the suburbs. I think this is all the social backdrop on why there's a needs for why people would like to spend less time in cooking. Clearly understood. That would be it from me. Thank you. Thank you. Igarashi-san next. Haruka Miyake from Organ style MUFG. Thank you very much. This is Haruka Miyake speaking. I am watching slide number page 12. One question. You have grown 9% on CAGR basis. When you look at the volume, what is the increase in volume? What is the impact of the unit price? You see seasoning is also growing and we have high brand recognition and it is growing. Is it the reason for Tempero Sazon or is there any other drivers that has grown this or led this growth in seasonings? Second question is about e-commerce in Brazil. In Latin American countries, I think you see rise of e-commerce so far. You have distributors network and they are firmly with you. I think that's demonstrated your strength so far. With this rise in e-commerce, would there be any difference in how you deal with the distribution network? Are you also responding to the rise in e-commerce? The e-commerce percentage, if it is growing in the future, you're still going to rely on and can you keep this distribution network that you have now? Those are the two questions that I have. Miyake-san, thank you very much for the question. The first one is the volume growth. I do not have detailed figures and numbers here, but yes, we have grown volumes, the figures, and also increase in prices. As was mentioned to you earlier by Yamamoto-san, based on data we have doing the marketing. Data-driven marketing are being carried out in Brazil. When you do shopping there, you would have to carry an ID numbers like. My number in Japan. To what you have purchased, you get return or reimbursement from the tax. When you do shopping, you would have to present that for that purpose. Using that as data, we can appropriately use those figures. How that has contributed to our product. Looking at those data, we have been growing our business. That's our history. The second question, e-commerce. Yes, during the COVID-19 period it grew and we had much of delivery business going on. Recently, people would like to go to the market and supermarkets and retailers directly. Yes, our commerce itself, of course, we have a Brazilian e-commerce platform and that is growing and we can do that. In order to grow the business, we need to increase the distributors' key accounts. Carrefour's Ponja Sukara is very big key. Accounts in Brazil and we do. Directly trade with them. Cash and carry, so to speak, those volume supermarkets. We are doing it direct trading. By doing that kind of business, we want to increase the profit. Yamamoto-san, do you have anything to add? Yes, thank you for the question. Yes, one comment to supplement. In the earlier presentation, I mentioned about the supplement, the amino vital and so forth. These products, of course, real stores are important to sell them, but I think they're important more in e-commerce. I think these products, along with the needs, we would do sales promotion including e-commerce earlier. What are the activities beyond now? In byproduct, I think the significance and meaning of e-commerce will be different. We have to identify that and we will be responding to that. Another supplementary comment is that, yes, likewise, other countries in Brazil, social network, I think it is going to be important for the e-commerce. I think we always would like to focus on those changes in society and would like to respond. Thank you very much. In that sense, your trade with e-commerce is going to be directly done by your company. Is my understanding correct? I think new entrant in the market is going to be easier in this market. You have a firm network in e-commerce as well, so that you will be able to lead in e-commerce market as well. Is my understanding correct? Thank you for the question. The first one. Yes, yes. Mr. Nakamura mentioned to you earlier there are some accounts that we go directly in the e-commerce, but as mentioned earlier, together with distributor we do have initiatives. I think we do both in e-commerce. The second question I have may not well taken your question, but e-commerce is easier to go into the new business or to have new entries and how we going to be responding in this market? Is that what was that your question? Yes, if it's going to be new channel and you may have new entrants coming into, that may be your risk, more risk for you. Based on retailers and store channels, maybe there might be more risks of new entrants. Is my understanding correct? If that is correct, how are you going to be responding to those new entrants into the e-commerce market? Thank you very much. Yes, this is my personal hypothetical answer. Depending on the area, I think it may be different. Yes. High unit price product and in a niche market, I think new entrants would come into the market. New entrants would come into through e-commerce. I think those daily products that we sell like seasonings and so forth, processed food, real stores sales are the main market. We would like to protect that. If there are new distribution where we see risks, we would like to fully cope with that. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Ms. Miyake. I see that many hands are still up, but I'm very sorry but since we are almost close to the time to finish, we would like to take the next question as the last question from JPMorgan Securities. Fujiwara-san, please go ahead. Good morning, I'm Satoshi Fujiwara from JPMorgan Securities. I have two questions. The first one is in Yamamoto-san's part, I believe it was page eight. You talked about the supply chain of your group and I would like to have a deeper understanding. In Brazil, MSG and amino acids are being supplied as a global hub. I think in ASEAN there's a similar structure. We talked about the tariff situation in the U.S. earlier, but in Brazil along with ASEAN, how do you split roles between Brazil and Southeast Asia as a hub to supply products? The second one is in 2015, I think the JV was dissolved for instant noodles. Is there a possibility that you might reenter in the form of a JV in Brazil to do instant noodles? I understand that in Peru it is growing. Is there a possibility of reentering instant noodles within Brazil? Fujiwara-san, thank you for the question. To your first question about the global supply chain amino acids, we have a global policy in managing where it is produced and where it is supplied to. Because of the North America tariff situation, Brazil is being slightly impacted and the same situation is said for ASEAN. Ajinomoto and amino acids are manufactured in ASEAN and what is produced there at the optimal price point is supplied globally and we figure out what is the optimal route when it comes to supply. Anti-dumping, of course, what is prioritized at the country will be prioritized locally, but it is being globally managed. Secondly, about the instant noodles in Brazil, at this point in time we are not looking at reentering Brazil, but Masai-san of the food division, if you have other thoughts, please go ahead and share. Of course, we have the aspiration of wanting to reenter instant noodles in Brazil, but for South America, in Peru Ajinomen is doing really well and like we mentioned earlier, we have just increased capacity and we would like to start there. This is growing. Neighboring countries would be Chile, Bolivia, Colombia, and perhaps Argentina. Going forward, we would like to expand in these neighboring countries and take a look at the situation and see. How about from Peru to Brazil, is that route viable? From Peru to Brazil could be a viable route. However, in South America in the middle there's the Andes mountain. Land transportation therefore is difficult. If we were to sell by sea, then we have to go around Panama Canal or Mazalan Sea Strait, and it's not that realistic. Okay, I see. Just one more point about my first question. Sorry that I'm asking such a detailed question. From Brazil, is there a possibility to export to Southeast Asia? If there, if that's already happening, what kind of products are they? Because I think in Southeast Asia, I think everything is already being produced within Southeast Asia. Are there products that are being supplied from Brazil to Southeast Asia? Ajinomoto itself is actually exported as a case from Brazil to Southeast Asia. In Southeast Asia, the basics is locally produced and locally consumed. However, for volume that is not being met, like amino acid, Brazil manufactures it and then is exported to Southeast Asia. Oh, I see. Brazil and Southeast Asia from a global perspective are important manufacturing hubs. Yes, they are. Okay, thank you very much. I now have a good understanding. Thank you. Thank you very much for the question. We would like to now close the Q and A session. Lastly, closing remarks from Nakamura will be made. Okay. Thank you very much for taking time out of your busy schedule to attend this meeting. As I mentioned earlier, this year, November in Belem, Brazil, COP30 will be held. Looking at global GHG emissions, the agri food system accounts for over 20%. However, efforts to reduce emissions in this sector have lagged behind due to the focus on the energy area. As Yamamoto-san mentioned earlier, our company. Has. Several businesses that can contribute to this sector including solutions such as Agipro L, which helps reduce GHG emissions from cattle, and a biostimulant derived from HD, a co-product of MSG fermentation. Today, these businesses combined have global sales of over ¥30 billion and generate double-digit profit margins. Furthermore, we aim to expand profits in the future by creating new economic value in the form of carbon credits associated with GHG reduction. At COP30, we will actively promote these solutions to increase global awareness, further accelerating business growth and creating a positive impact. I will also go to Belem myself. In conjunction with these initiatives, we will steadily grow the business of the entire group and increase the corporate value of the Ajinomoto Group. We hope that you will continue to look forward to our efforts. Thank you very much once again for attending. This concludes the meeting. Thank you very much for your participation. Thank you and goodbye. Thank you.