Yushin Brewer Co., Ltd.

Yushin Brewer Co., Ltd. (勇心酒造株式会社) is a Japanese company based in Utazu, Kagawa Prefecture, founded in 1854 (Ansei 1) as a sake brewery. Over more than a century and a half it has combined traditional brewing with research into the comprehensive use of rice, positioning itself as a "comprehensive rice utilization research company." Its signature innovation is Rice Power Extract (ライスパワーエキス), a functional ingredient produced from rice using the company's proprietary fermentation platform, which it calls "Japanese-style biotechnology" (日本型バイオ). The company operates across three main business areas: skincare, body care, and sake. Its skincare lines include the Rice Power (ライース) series — Repair, Active, Basic, and Special — sold through mail order and department stores, while body care includes Atopi Smile (アトピスマイル) and Miss Earl (ミスアール). It also offers inner care and medical/nursing care products such as Barrier Care 101 and Barrier Care. Its traditional sake business continues under the Yushin Brewer name. Rice Power Extract is described as a functional material that works with the body's own functions rather than supplementing from outside, a concept the company calls "bio-function normalization" (生体機能健全化). Rice Power No.11 is recognized as the only ingredient approved as an active pharmaceutical ingredient (quasi-drug) for improving skin moisture retention. The company markets products bearing the Rice Power mark only when efficacy and safety have been scientifically demonstrated. Yushin Brewer is led by the Tokuyama family. The sixth president, Takashi Tokuyama, born in 1941, joined after research roles at the National Tax Agency's Brewing Research Institute and drove the development of Rice Power Extract. The current seventh president, Takahito Tokuyama, born in 1974, continues the research and product development tradition. The company remains privately held and active, with recent news including a 2025 award at the Shikoku Sake Appraisal and the 2026 development of a functional fermented material for animals.

Yushin Brewer Co., Ltd. was founded in 1854 (Ansei 1) as a sake brewery in Utazu, Kagawa Prefecture, Japan. For generations it has brewed sake using the natural bounty of Kagawa, developing deep expertise in fermentation and brewing. Over time, the company came to see fermentation not only as a craft but as a way to unlock the potential of rice. A turning point came under the leadership of the sixth president, Takashi Tokuyama, born in 1941. After graduating from Tohoku University's Faculty of Agriculture and the University of Tokyo's Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, he worked at the National Tax Agency's Brewing Research Institute. In 1972 he became the sixth president of Yushin Brewer and began research aimed at the comprehensive utilization of rice. Around forty years ago, he started research to find new uses for rice, building on the insight that the microorganisms used in sake brewing—koji mold, yeast, lactic acid bacteria—could be harnessed in new ways. This research led to the development of the company's proprietary "Japanese-style biotechnology" (日本型バイオ), which draws out the inherent power of microorganisms without genetic modification, and ultimately to Rice Power Extract (ライスパワーエキス). This functional ingredient, derived from rice through fermentation, is described as working with the body's own functions rather than supplementing from outside—a concept the company calls "bio-function normalization" (生体機能健全化). Rice Power No.11, in particular, is recognized as the only quasi-drug active ingredient approved for improving skin moisture retention. The company expanded beyond sake into skincare, body care, and healthcare products. Its Rice Power (ライース) skincare line, Atopi Smile body care, and Barrier Care products are sold through mail order, department stores, and medical/nursing channels. The seventh president, Takahito Tokuyama, born in 1974, joined the company in 1998 after graduating from Tohoku University and the University of Tokyo. He worked in research and product development before becoming head of sales, and now serves as representative director and president. Today Yushin Brewer positions itself as a comprehensive rice utilization research company, guided by the philosophy of "being kept alive" (生かされている)—a traditional Japanese and Eastern view that one is sustained by nature, people, and history. The company continues to develop new applications for Rice Power Extract, including a 2026 functional fermented material for animals, and remains active in sake brewing, winning awards at the Shikoku Sake Appraisal in 2025.

• 2026

  Develops new functional fermented material for animals, "Rice Life Extract."

• 2025

  Wins Excellence Award in warmed sake category at Shikoku Sake Appraisal.

• 1998

  Takahito Tokuyama joins the company.

• 1972

  Takashi Tokuyama becomes the sixth president and begins research on comprehensive rice utilization.

• 1854

  Founded as a sake brewery in Utazu, Kagawa Prefecture.

A research-driven company combining traditional Japanese fermentation with modern science to create functional ingredients and products from rice.

• Rice Power Extract (ライスパワーエキス)

  Functional ingredient derived from rice via proprietary fermentation.

• Rice Power No.11

  Quasi-drug active ingredient approved for improving skin moisture retention.

• Rice Power (ライース) skincare series

  Skincare line including Repair, Active, Basic, and Special.

• Atopi Smile (アトピスマイル)

  Body care product.

• Miss Earl (ミスアール)

  Body care product.

• Barrier Care 101

  Inner care product.

• Barrier Care

  Medical and nursing care product.

• Yushin Brewer sake

  Traditional sake brewed by the company.

1. 1ライスパワーの勇心酒造yushin-brewer.com
2. 2ものづくりに込めた哲学-ライスパワーの勇心酒造yushin-brewer.com
3. 3ライスパワーエキスについて-ライスパワーの勇心酒造yushin-brewer.com
4. 4勇心酒造が目指していること-ライスパワーの勇心酒造yushin-brewer.com
5. 5Yushin Brewer Co., Ltd. (Japan) - Wikidatawikidata.org