Morinaga & Company, Ltd. (森永製菓株式会社, Morinaga Seika Kabushiki-gaisha) is a global confectionery company in Tokyo, Japan, in operation since 1899.[5] Their products include candy and other confectioneries.[4]
Morinaga is loosely affiliated with Morinaga Milk Industry Co., Ltd., a public company in which Morinaga & Company holds 10.34% of the stock.
The company was founded in 1899 by Taichiro Morinaga, who opened a Western confectionery shop in Tokyo after returning from the United States. It was incorporated as Morinaga & Co., Ltd. in 1912.[8]
In 1960, the company advertised that women should give chocolates to men on Valentine's Day. This action strongly influenced the present culture of Valentine's Day in Japan.[9] Moreover, in 2009, the company made chocolates for men to give women, which are called Gyaku-choco. (Gyaku means reverse in Japanese.)
Morinaga began selling its popular Hi-Chew candy in the US market in 2008. The candy quickly became popular among baseball players, a fad started by Japanese baseball player Junichi Tazawa of the Boston Red Sox. Morinaga signed a sponsorship deal with the Red Sox in 2012 and Hi-Chew's popularity spread quickly in the 2010s. Morinaga began reverse imports of American Hi-Chew flavors to Japan in 2023.[10][11]
Morinaga has had Ayumi Hamasaki and Mao Asada appear in their commercials, and in the past has used stars such as the Carpenters to advertise their products.
Morinaga began manufacturing Hi-Chew candy in Mebane, North Carolina in 2016. Morinaga announced plans for a second Mebane factory in 2024, scheduled to begin manufacturing in 2027.[11][13]
