Yoshinori Okoso
Profile
Performance in office
Tenure
Tenure
Background
He was born in Kagawa Prefecture in 1915. After helping with sales at the Kagawa Prefecture swine breeders' association, chaired by his uncle Katsutaro Fujisawa, he opened a seven-person meat processing plant in Terashima-honcho, Tokushima City, in March 1942 at age 26. The plant was destroyed in the war in 1945, but he rebuilt it in the same city in 1948, and in December 1951 reorganized it as Tokushima Ham Co., Ltd., capitalized at ¥1.5 million, becoming Representative Director. As of 1960 he held 62.5% of the shares, giving him the backing of ownership himself.
Selection
As the founder himself, he had no predecessor as president. In 1962 he became president of Tokushima Ham Sales Co., Ltd., which changed its name to Tokushima Ham Co., Ltd. that year. In August 1963, at the suggestion of Asahi Chemical Industry President Kagayaki Miyazaki, it absorbed Torisei Ham, then fourth in the industry, and renamed itself Nippon Meat Packers, with him remaining president. As of February 1967 the three senior managing directors were Mitsuru Tsujimoto, a co-owner of Torisei Ham, Kotaro Ga, who came from Asahi Chemical Industry, and Shigeo Suzuki, from the Tokushima days; the founder kept the presidency while seating officers from the merger partner and the alliance partner alongside him.
Initiatives
In May 1956 he built the industry's first reinforced-concrete plant in Osaka, and in October 1961 listed the company on the Second Section of the Osaka Securities Exchange. The August 1963 merger with Torisei Ham lifted it from third in the industry to first. He declined a capital alliance proposed the previous year by Swift of the United States, concluding only a technical tie-up in 1969. In January 1973 he bought the Takuhoku Home Flyers to launch the Nippon-Ham Fighters, tying the ball club to the nationwide sales network. In March 1977 he acquired Day-Lee Foods of the U.S., moving upstream from processing into meat.
Career
Career
NH Foods
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| 1942 | 徳島食肉加工場を創業 (translation pending) |
| Dec 1951 | Reorganized as Tokushima Ham as Representative Director |
| 1962 | President, Tokushima Ham Sales |
| Aug 1963 | Merged with Torisei Ham, NH Foods as President |
| Jun 1996 | Stepped down as President |
References 2
References (Japanese primary sources)
- 日本企業要覧 1967年版
- 日本ハム 有価証券報告書【沿革】