Japan Focus: What Kirin and Asahi are planning, what's new in men's health, and what seniors want

Turning waste into use: Japan firm uses unwanted sika deer for supplements to boost male vitality

Japanese firm Health Business Info Co. is using sika deer​, which is overabundant in the country, to make supplements for improving male vitality.

Different parts of the deer, including its skin, bones and horns, are used to produce the supplement. Sold under the brand Tsuyo Sugi, it is also the firm's first health supplement to use sika deer as the main ingredient.

"In recent years, the Hokkaido sika deer have been reproducing excessively and this has caused major effects on agriculture, forestry, and traffic safety. In order to protect the environment, the Japanese government has been seeking to reduce the number of wild deer, but is lacking an effective solution."​

Healthy Ageing APAC Summit: Japanese giants Kirin to showcase functional food innovation strategy

The deputy director of Kirin's Business Creation Department is set to showcase how the firm is striving to meet the needs of the ageing population​ by maximising the immunity benefits of functional foods at the second Healthy Ageing APAC Summit.

With more than a century of business heritage, and perhaps best known globally for its brewing business, Kirin is also at the heart of functional food innovation, both in Japan and further afield.

In recent years, the company has invested considerable resources in the health and wellness sector, in order to meet the needs of the country's rapidly ageing population.

Sparkling water for skin health? Japan pharma firm Eisai adds new flavour to existing range

A new carbonated beverage​ with added vitamins, iron and other nutrients, and which claims to improve skin health, has been introduced to the Japanese market.

The new carbonated beverage, Chocola BB Sparkling Kiwi and Lemon Flavour, is a product of Japan pharmaceutical firm Eisai Co and entered the market on April 9. It has also been approved as a Food with Nutrient Function Claims by Japan's Consumer Affairs Agency.

Eisai Co first launched the Chocola BB Sparkling series, a range of functional beverages, in 2011. Some of the company's previous launches include Chocola BB Sparkling + Fibre beverage to boost the user's intake of dietary fibre.

Asahi opens innovations company to drive R&D in health food ingredient use

Japanese brewery giant Asahi Group has established the Asahi Quality and Innovations Co.​ (AQI) as it seeks to advance its expertise in yeast and lactic acid bacteria, and adopt new digital technologies.

The company, which started operations on April 1, was established as part of Asahi's medium-term management policy. With the opening of the new company, Asahi Group will consolidate the functions of the R&D centre of the parent company and transfer it to AQI.

The new firm, which is located in the Ibaraki prefecture — away from the company's HQ in the Tokyo prefecture — will focus on five key areas, namely, to establish a pillar of new business via R&D, to develop new health food ingredients, to promote R&D, to contribute to an ethical business model (such as reducing environmental impact), and to create new businesses.

Greying population calls for more home-delivered nutrition in Japan

Japan's ageing population is driving the trend of companies providing home-delivered nutritional products​.

One such example is major dairy player Morinaga, which recently added a new probiotic enteric milk to its portfolio of exclusively home-delivered products.

Targeted at the elderly market, the product contains the company's proprietary probiotic strain, Bifidobacterium BB 536​,​ and LAC-shield​, an ingredient made from heat-treated Lactobacillus paracasei​ MCC 1849.