Sojitz Acquires Sushi Avenue, Expanding Sushi Sales in Supermarkets Across Over 20 US States

Sojitz Corporation has acquired Sushi Avenue, a company operating a takeout sushi business in the United States.

Sushi Avenue has been developing its takeout sushi business in more than 300 supermarkets across over 20 states, primarily in the Midwestern United States.

In the United States, while sushi markets have traditionally been led by high-end restaurants, recently there has been a move toward localization and generalization, such as offering sushi in school cafeterias, which resulted in the market size expanding to 1.6 times that of Japan. Looking ahead, in addition to the ever-popular California roll, there is an anticipating increase in demand for nigiri sushi and a higher need for a variety of seafood of good quality.

Sojitz, leveraging its procurement capacity and product development strength in the fishery business mainly accumulated in Japan, aims to further expand its seafood value chain by entering the growing and diversifying demand market in the United States through its new base, MF America, acquired in 2022.