Kewpie Corporation recently began production of condiments at a new plant in Tennessee, which was built to serve as the second production base in the United States for Q&B Foods, Inc., a Kewpie Group company headquartered in California. The opening ceremony took place on May 20. With the Tennessee plant in operation, in addition to reacting to expanding demand in the Americas, the company aims to open up more markets and get greater brand penetration, including in the United States, which is one of the world’s largest markets for salad condiments.

At the Tennessee plant, Kewpie will produce mayonnaise and dressings for both household and commercial use and supply them to the Midwest and East Coast. With this dual production base system, the company can reduce the time and cost required to ship products from its California plant and offer products to the East Coast. The Tennessee plant will triple the firm’s production capacity in the United States and create demand.

In addition, the plant will include the first visitor area for the Kewpie Group in the U.S. This will create a point of contact with the company’s customers and help expand the number of Kewpie fans.

Numerous people in government administration and from partner corporations attended the site’s opening ceremony. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and other VIPs made speeches.

“Our plan is for this Tennessee facility to become the manufacturing base not just for the United States, but for all of North and South America combined,” says Mitsuru Takamiya, Kewpie Corporation representative director, president and chief executive corporate officer. “This means we’ll expand the scope of the plant and contribute to Tennessee’s economy by continuing to create jobs for many years to come. Furthermore, the Kewpie Group has long been engaged in initiatives aimed at sharing the importance and joy of food, based on the spirit of ‘contributing to society through food.’ In Tennessee as well, we plan to conduct food-related activities that will enable us to put down roots in the local community.”

A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held, and the opening ceremony participants then viewed the plant’s production line from the visitor route while being told about the Kewpie Group’s history and the ambitions behind its founding.