Umios
Umios is a Japanese seafood and marine-products company whose business traces its origins to a fish-trading operation established in Osaka in 1880.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Umios Corporation is a Japanese seafood company with historical roots in a fish-purchasing and wholesaling business started by Ikujiro Nakabe in Osaka in 1880. The company developed from a domestic fish-trading operation into a diversified marine-products group involved in fishing, seafood processing and distribution, aquaculture-related activities, feeds, and livestock production. Its long corporate history includes substantial changes in geography, legal structure, business scope, and corporate identity. The business moved its operating base to Shimonoseki in Yamaguchi Prefecture in 1904, where it began purse-seine fishing using early powered vessels. In 1924, the operation was incorporated as K.K. Hayashikane Shoten. During the following decades, its fishing activities expanded to include steam trawling, Danish seining, purse seining, and trap fishing. Nakabe also established separate whaling companies, including Enyo Whaling in 1929 and Taiyo Whaling in 1936. These entities were consolidated in 1943, after which the company adopted a series of names reflecting its changing corporate structure and business direction. Following the end of the Second World War, the company lost virtually all of its overseas assets and operations. It changed its name to Taiyo Gyogyo K.K., or Taiyo Fishery Co., Ltd., in 1945 and moved its headquarters to Tokyo in 1949. Overseas activity resumed in 1951. In 1960, the group broadened its activities beyond marine products into feeds and livestock production, creating a more diversified food and primary-production platform. The corporate identity changed again in the 1990s. A new trademark was adopted in 1993, when the company became Maruha Corporation. It acquired Taiyo Seafoods in 1996. In 2004, Maruha Group Inc. was established as a holding company, and in 2007 the group combined with Nichiro Corporation to form Maruha Nichiro Holdings. A later structural reorganization led to the adoption of the Maruha Nichiro Corporation name in 2014, accompanied by a Tokyo Stock Exchange listing. The company was removed from the Nikkei 225 in 2022. On March 1, 2026, Maruha Nichiro rebranded as Umios Corporation. The Umios identity therefore represents the latest stage of a business lineage extending across more than a century, rather than a newly established seafood venture. The company describes its group purpose through the slogan “Bringing Delicious Delight to the World.” Its international network includes subsidiaries and operations in Japan, New Zealand, Australia, the United States, Europe, other parts of Asia, and South America. Its competitive context includes major Japanese seafood companies such as Nippon Suisan Kaisha and Kyokuyo.
History
Umios traces its origins to 1880, when Ikujiro Nakabe began buying fish from fishermen and selling it to wholesalers at Osaka's wholesale fish market. The early business was based on intermediation between fishermen and wholesale buyers, but its later development increasingly integrated fishing and marine-resource operations. In 1904, the operating base moved to Shimonoseki in Yamaguchi Prefecture. The company began purse-seine fishing with early powered boats and subsequently expanded its fishing methods. In 1924, the business was incorporated as K.K. Hayashikane Shoten, ending its period as a privately operated enterprise. Its activities came to include steam trawling, Danish seining, purse seining, and trap fishing. The company also entered whaling during the interwar period. Enyo Whaling Co. Ltd. was incorporated in 1929, followed by Taiyo Whaling Co. Ltd. in 1936. Taiyo Whaling operated Antarctic whaling activities using two large factory ships and 19 whale catchers. In 1943, Hayashikane Shoten, Enyo Whaling, and Taiyo Whaling were consolidated, and the resulting corporation was named Nishi Taiyo Gyogyo Tosei K.K. In 1945, the corporate name changed to Taiyo Gyogyo K.K., commonly rendered in English as Taiyo Fishery Co., Ltd. The end of the Second World War brought a major setback: virtually all of the company's overseas assets and operations were lost. The headquarters moved to Tokyo in 1949, while the organization began rebuilding and resumed overseas operations in 1951. The company also established a professional baseball club in 1949, an organization that later became the Yokohama DeNA BayStars; the club was sold to Tokyo Broadcasting System in 2002. The business broadened beyond marine products in 1960 by entering feeds and livestock production. This diversification complemented its seafood activities and helped establish a broader food and primary-production portfolio. A new headquarters building was completed in central Tokyo in 1978. In 1993, the company adopted a new trademark and changed its corporate name to Maruha Corporation. It acquired Taiyo Seafoods Co., Ltd. in 1996. Maruha Group Inc. was established as a holding company in 2004. In 2007, an economic union with Nichiro Corporation created Maruha Nichiro Holdings, Inc., combining two significant Japanese marine-products businesses. Another major reorganization took place in 2014. The company adopted the Maruha Nichiro Corporation name and its stock was listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The company was removed from the Nikkei 225 in 2022. On March 1, 2026, Maruha Nichiro changed its name to Umios Corporation. Under the Umios identity, the group continues the international seafood and food-business lineage associated with its predecessor companies. Its stated international reach includes subsidiaries in Japan, New Zealand, Australia, the United States, Europe, Asia, and South America. The group's stated slogan is “Bringing Delicious Delight to the World.”
- 2026
Rebranded as Umios
[1]Maruha Nichiro changed its name to Umios Corporation on March 1, 2026.
- 2022
Removed from the Nikkei 225
[1]The predecessor company Maruha Nichiro was removed from the Nikkei 225 index.
- 2014
Maruha Nichiro Corporation structure adopted
[1]A reorganization produced the Maruha Nichiro Corporation name and a Tokyo Stock Exchange listing.
- 2007
Combination with Nichiro
[1]Maruha Group and Nichiro Corporation combined to form Maruha Nichiro Holdings, Inc.
- 2004
Maruha Group established
[1]Maruha Group Inc. was established as a holding company.
- 1993
Maruha identity adopted
[1]A new trademark was adopted and the corporate name changed to Maruha Corporation.
- 1960
Expansion into feeds and livestock
[1]The company expanded from marine products into feeds and livestock production.
- 1951
Overseas operations resume
[1]The company restarted overseas operations after its postwar disruption.
- 1945
Renamed Taiyo Fishery
[1]The corporation adopted the Taiyo Gyogyo name after the war, following the loss of virtually all overseas assets and operations.
- 1943
Fishing and whaling entities consolidated
[1]Hayashikane Shoten, Enyo Whaling, and Taiyo Whaling were combined into one corporation.
Products and positioning
An integrated Japanese seafood and food-production group combining fishing heritage, marine-product processing, international sourcing and distribution, and related feed and livestock businesses.
Seafood · 1880
Seafood and marine products
Seafood is the company's historic core, extending from fish purchasing and commercial fishing into marine-product handling, processing, distribution, and international sourcing. The business lineage includes multiple fishing methods and a broad international operating network.
Processed food
Processed seafood
The group participates in the wider marine-products value chain beyond harvesting, including processed seafood and related food production. Specific consumer product names and ranges are not identified in the supplied reference material.
Animal nutrition and livestock · 1960
Feeds and livestock products
Since 1960, the company has operated beyond marine products in feeds and livestock production. These activities form part of the group's broader food and primary-production portfolio.
Brand decisions
2026
Corporate rebrand to UmiosStrategyBackground
After more than a century of development under predecessor names including Taiyo Fishery, Maruha, and Maruha Nichiro, the group adopted a new corporate identity.
Action taken
Maruha Nichiro changed its corporate name to Umios Corporation on March 1, 2026, presenting the company under the Umios identity and the slogan “Bringing Delicious Delight to the World.”
Aftermath
The rebrand marks the current phase of the company's historical seafood and international food-business lineage. Further operational or financial effects are not specified in the supplied material.
2007
Combination with Nichiro CorporationM&ABackground
Maruha Group and Nichiro Corporation were brought together as part of a broader consolidation in Japan's marine-products sector.
Action taken
The two businesses formed Maruha Nichiro Holdings, Inc.
Aftermath
The combination created the corporate group that later adopted the Maruha Nichiro Corporation name and ultimately rebranded as Umios.
Sources1 sources
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