From late May to early June 2026, we visited India to seek new sources of frozen vegetables and inspected the factories of several manufacturers specialising in frozen sweetcorn, broccoli and okra. As sourcing from traditional producing regions has become increasingly difficult due to the weak yen and global shifts in supply and demand, this initiative is designed to respond to the needs of our Japanese business partners.
From late May to early June, ABCD Inc. (headquarters: Tokyo; Representative Director and CEO: Tatsuya Shiono) travelled to India to look for new suppliers of frozen vegetables. We visited the plants of several manufacturers handling a wide range of products, including frozen sweetcorn, broccoli and okra.
Why India, and why now
In recent years, a weaker yen and shifts in global supply and demand have made it steadily harder to source these frozen vegetables from their traditional origins. Against that background, a growing number of customers in Japan have asked us whether an alternative supply could be secured in India. This trip was our answer to those requests.
A new supplier is something we verify with our own eyes first
When ABCD begins working with a new supplier, we make a point of going there ourselves and looking at both the production floor and the product first-hand. It is the only way to judge, on site, whether the quality is something we can deliver to customers in Japan with confidence.
On this visit too, we examined the production equipment, the quality control systems and the condition of the product itself, and spoke frankly with the local teams about the quality and specifications the Japanese market calls for. As a result, we found manufacturers and products we can introduce to our customers in Japan with confidence.
Still exploring — and already seeing India's potential
Sourcing frozen vegetables is still at an exploratory stage for us. Even so, we came away convinced that India holds many promising suppliers that are not yet known in Japan.
Starting from frozen potatoes, ABCD is widening the range of what we handle to frozen vegetables. Rather than simply buying and reselling, we will keep verifying each step on the ground and build a dependable supply base that gives customers in Japan a new option.
