Japan's Sojitz buys US sushi business in seafood expansion drive

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese trading house Sojitz said on Tuesday it had bought the takeout sushi businesses of Sushi Avenue Inc in the United States for an undisclosed sum, as part of a drive to expand its seafood operations.

Sojitz is aiming to boost annual net profit from seafood operations to 4 billion yen ($26 million) in the year to March 2027 from 1.2 billion yen in the year ended March 2024.

"We are taking on the challenge of becoming the world's No.1 distinctive marine products group, with strength in tuna and sushi products," finance chief Makoto Shibuya told reporters.

"We aim to boost the profitability of domestic seafood operations and strengthen initiatives in growing overseas markets," he said.

The U.S. sushi market has grown to almost 1.6 times the size of the market in Japan, according to Sojitz, with favourites such as California rolls becoming a staple of American cuisine and nigiri sushi growing in popularity.

Shibuya said the purchase price was several billions of yen, without giving an exact figure.

Sushi Avenue operates a supermarket takeout sushi business with over 300 retail locations in the Midwest and across the United States.

In entering the United States, Sojitz aims to leverage the procurement and product development expertise of its Japanese seafood business.

Japanese trading houses have been investing in the seafood sector, with Mitsubishi Corp owning a Norwegian salmon producer and Mitsui & Co buying into an Ecuadoran shrimp farming company.

Asked whether Sojitz would also invest in salmon farming, Shibuya said it might if there was a good opportunity.

Sojitz reported a 4.1% rise in net profit for the April-June quarter to 23.04 billion yen and stuck to its full-year profit forecast of 110 billion yen.

The company plans to withdraw from its Philippines car business by the end of this year due to a slumping performance amid fierce competition.

($1 = 154.7400 yen)

(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Mark Potter)