The Soy Sauce Industry and KikomanBrief History of Soy Sauce and KikkomanAccording to the Kikkoman case, soy sauce was first discovered in China around to 500 BC Then a Japanese priest who was in China came across soy sauce and brought it back to Japan. The roots of soy sauce in Japan date back to the 16th century. In the mid-17th century, two Japanese families, Mogi and Takanashi, began producing soy sauce in Noda, where good soybeans, wheat, and salt were available, giving rise to today's Kikkoman Corporation. Soy sauce was exported abroad during the 19th century, accompanying migrant workers from Japan. In 1907, Kikkoman built a soy sauce manufacturing plant in Denver, Colorado, catering primarily to Japanese immigrants to the United States, already numbering in the hundreds of thousands. The growing interest in Japanese food in the Western market and the Kikkoman's move to the international market Japan's influence can be seen everywhere, from fashion and interior design to chopsticks and sake. Because we live in a world where everything seems to move fast. We are forced to work longer than any generation before us, to work faster to keep up with the Internet, and our lives have become frenetic, filled with the urgent demands of contemporary life. So people try to bring tranquility and simplicity into their daily lives. This is why more and more people in the West are attracted to Japanese things. Japanese cuisine is popular because it offers people the chance to experience a relaxed and clear-headed culture. Another reason is globalization. Globalization allows people to travel more frequently; this reduces linguistic and cultural barriers. When people travel to a place, they tend to bring something native to their hometown and in this case of course, Japanese food whose main ingredient contains soy sauce. Kikkoman had foreseen the opportunities of the upcoming Japanese food trend in the Western market. Furthermore, since the Japanese soy sauce market was already saturated, Kikkoman had to find a new market to expand its customer base. The US market is their first place of interest. In the initial stage of introducing its product to the US market, the company had to put in a lot of effort to create and increase the demand for soy sauce as some parts of the countries were not familiar with the product and its use, while other parts did not like it taste, including those who were against Asian products.