Japan Jiffy Foods, Inc.
Corporate brand
UnclaimedA long-established Japanese freeze-dried food manufacturer, founded in 1960 and known for its JIFFY'S brand and onion gratin soup.
Last updated September 28, 2026
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Overview
Japan Jiffy Foods, Inc. (日本ジフィー食品株式会社) is a Japanese manufacturer specialising in vacuum freeze-dried (FD) foods, headquartered in Osaka and founded on 2 July 1960. The company began life as B.B. Foods Co., Ltd. (ビービー食品株式会社) with capital of 20 million yen, was renamed Nihon Instant Foods Co., Ltd. (日本インスタント食品株式会社) in 1961, and adopted its present name, Japan Jiffy Foods, Inc., in May 1963. Its core business is the manufacture and sale of vacuum freeze-dried foods, a category it has helped pioneer in Japan for more than half a century. The company launched its JIFFY'S product line in 1961 and built its first plant at Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, which was completed in 1962. Over the following decades it developed a series of FD technologies and products, including chicken powder by enzymatic decomposition (1967), powdered soy sauce (1969), roasting technology (1973), Japan's first domestically produced FD fried tofu (1976), a puff formulation (1979), mass production of lactic acid bacteria (1980), and mass production of fried products (1995). A second plant was completed at Mito, Ibaraki Prefecture, in 1993, and the head office moved to its current Osaka address the same year. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and quality assurance functions, and has obtained ISO 9001 (2000) and ISO 22000 (2016) certifications. Japan Jiffy Foods is best known to consumers for its freeze-dried onion gratin soup, developed around 1990 and still sold today with its signature cheese-topped French bread. The company states that it is the only manufacturer still offering a product that insists on the cheese bread component. Its product range spans soups, instant foods and other freeze-dried items, with the corporate site citing around 300 products and 5,500 recipes. In addition to retail products, the company manufactures for other companies on an OEM basis. The company is a subsidiary of Kurabo Industries Ltd. (倉敷紡績株式会社), which is listed as its shareholder. It employs around 230 people and has capital of 440 million yen. Its main banks are Mizuho Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and MUFG Bank. The representative director and president is Masateru Nojiri. The company marked its 66th anniversary in 2026 and continues to position freeze-dried technology as a bridge from food to life, with recent investments in LNG boiler conversion and natural-refrigerant and solar power equipment at its Mito plant.
History
Japan Jiffy Foods, Inc. was established on 2 July 1960 under the name B.B. Foods Co., Ltd. (ビービー食品株式会社) with capital of 20 million yen. In March 1961 the company was renamed Nihon Instant Foods Co., Ltd. (日本インスタント食品株式会社), and in April and June of that year it carried out two capital increases, raising capital to 80 million yen and then 140 million yen. Construction of the Uji plant began in June 1961, and in September the company announced and began selling its JIFFY'S product line. The Uji plant (No. 1 plant) was completed in May 1962 with the installation of its first machine, followed by a second machine (Atlas) in February 1963. In May 1963 the company adopted its current name, Japan Jiffy Foods, Inc., and opened a Tokyo sales office (now the Tokyo branch). Through the 1960s and 1970s the company built a series of freeze-dried technologies: chicken powder by enzymatic decomposition (1967), powdered soy sauce (1969), roasting technology for product development (1973), Japan's first domestically produced freeze-dried fried tofu (1976), and a puff formulation (1979). In 1980 it established mass production of lactic acid bacteria. A research and development centre was completed in December 1987. In the 1990s the company expanded its manufacturing footprint. Construction of the Mito plant began in March 1992, and a full-scale production line for moulded products was established in September. The Mito plant was completed in February 1993, capital was increased to 440 million yen in April, and the head office moved to its current address in November. In 1995 the company established mass production and technology for fried products, and in 1998 it developed a new formulation for minced meat production. The Uji establishment obtained ISO 9001 certification in November 2000, and an X-ray inspection machine was introduced in July 2001. A new test machine was introduced in March 2006, and a mass-production cooking line for minced meat was installed in January 2009. The Tokyo branch moved in October 2010 (Yaesu Daibiru) and again in September 2020 (Sanko Shimbashi Building). The Uji plant office building (Monozukuri Centre) was completed in August 2014, and ISO 22000 certification was obtained in August 2016. In February 2023 the Mito plant converted its boiler fuel from heavy oil to LNG, and in February 2026 it completed the replacement of major refrigeration equipment with natural-refrigerant machines and introduced solar power generation equipment. The company's best-known consumer product, freeze-dried onion gratin soup, was developed around 1990. At the time, instant soups were dominated by powdered types such as corn soup, and freeze-dried soups were mainly egg soup. The company sought to create a new need by developing a Western-style soup that could be eaten. A restaurant visit during market research led to the idea of a soup with cheese-topped French bread floating in onion soup. The company experimented with many ingredients and struggled particularly with how to make the cheese bread, eventually achieving smoothness and shape retention when reconstituted with hot water. It remains, according to the company, the only manufacturer still selling a product that insists on the cheese bread component. The product has been improved over more than 20 years and is now also supplied on an OEM basis.
Founded as B.B. Foods Co., Ltd. with capital of 20 million yen
Renamed Nihon Instant Foods Co., Ltd.
Announced and began selling JIFFY'S products
Uji plant (No. 1 plant) completed; first machine installed
Renamed Japan Jiffy Foods, Inc.; Tokyo sales office opened
Developed chicken powder by enzymatic decomposition
Developed powdered soy sauce
Product development using roasting technology
Developed Japan's first domestically produced freeze-dried fried tofu
Established puff formulation
Products and positioning
A long-established specialist in vacuum freeze-dried foods, combining manufacturing technology, R&D and quality assurance to deliver safe, convenient foods for the table.
Onion gratin soup
Freeze-dried soup with slowly simmered amber onions, rich broth and cheese-topped French bread; developed around 1990.
JIFFY'S freeze-dried foods
The company's original product line launched in 1961.
Freeze-dried fried tofu
Japan's first domestically produced FD fried tofu, developed in 1976.
Chicken powder
Developed in 1967 using enzymatic decomposition.
Powdered soy sauce
Developed in 1969.
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