Ito Yokado and 7-Eleven Stand Behind U.S. Pork

Ito Yokado and 7-Eleven Stand Behind U.S. Pork

A major Japanese retail company has taken the unprecedented step of identifying U.S. pork clearly on the packaging of three of its own store-branded, processed-pork products. Seven and i Holdings decided to take this emphatic step after a year of discussions with USMEF-Japan. The parent company of both Ito Yokado and 7-Eleven in Japan has a sterling reputation for quality, and the U.S. pork labeling sends a tremendous message that Seven & i Holdings stands behind the quality of U.S. pork.

The company originally purchased Canadian and Danish pork as raw materials for its processed pork products. But after working closely with USMEF, a decision was made to buy U.S. pork exclusively due to its high quality, stable supply and reasonable price.

“The real coup is the fact that they are not only using U.S. pork exclusively, but also indicating the country of origin directly on the packaging using the ‘American Pork’ logo,” said Greg Hanes, USMEF’s Japan director. “This demonstrates the company’s firm commitment to U.S. pork and greatly increases loyalty to our product. We hope this is the beginning of a larger trend, in which companies choose to label more and more U.S. pork in processed and prepared retail items.”

The labeled products introduced by Seven and i holdings are “Roast Ham,” “Arabiki Sausage” and “Lachs Ham” (prosciutto style).

As food prices soar, Japanese store brand products are becoming more and more popular as a source for high quality products at a reasonable price. Since introducing the brand last year, Seven & i Holdings now sells about 300 “Seven Premium” items at its 12,115 supermarkets and convenience stores, which include 7-Eleven, Ito Yokado, York Benimaru and York Mart. Japan is home to almost twice as many 7-Eleven stores as any other country in the world, and to more than one-third of all 7-Eleven stores worldwide.

This project was made possible by the support of several of USMEF’s funding partners – especially the Indiana Soybean Alliance and the Minnesota Soybean Research and Promotion Council.

Ito Yokado and 7-Eleven Stand Behind U.S. Pork

A major Japanese retail company has taken the unprecedented step of identifying U.S. pork clearly on the packaging of three of its own store-branded, processed-pork products. Seven and i Holdings decided to take this emphatic step after a year of discussions with USMEF-Japan. The parent company of both Ito Yokado and 7-Eleven in Japan has a sterling reputation for quality, and the U.S. pork labeling sends a tremendous message that Seven & i Holdings stands behind the quality of U.S. pork.

The company originally purchased Canadian and Danish pork as raw materials for its processed pork products. But after working closely with USMEF, a decision was made to buy U.S. pork exclusively due to its high quality, stable supply and reasonable price.

“The real coup is the fact that they are not only using U.S. pork exclusively, but also indicating the country of origin directly on the packaging using the ‘American Pork’ logo,” said Greg Hanes, USMEF’s Japan director. “This demonstrates the company’s firm commitment to U.S. pork and greatly increases loyalty to our product. We hope this is the beginning of a larger trend, in which companies choose to label more and more U.S. pork in processed and prepared retail items.”

The labeled products introduced by Seven and i holdings are “Roast Ham,” “Arabiki Sausage” and “Lachs Ham” (prosciutto style).

As food prices soar, Japanese store brand products are becoming more and more popular as a source for high quality products at a reasonable price. Since introducing the brand last year, Seven & i Holdings now sells about 300 “Seven Premium” items at its 12,115 supermarkets and convenience stores, which include 7-Eleven, Ito Yokado, York Benimaru and York Mart. Japan is home to almost twice as many 7-Eleven stores as any other country in the world, and to more than one-third of all 7-Eleven stores worldwide.

This project was made possible by the support of several of USMEF’s funding partners – especially the Indiana Soybean Alliance and the Minnesota Soybean Research and Promotion Council.