Companies

How Koike-Ya Pioneered Potato Chips in Japan, Came up with Seaweed Flavor

Courtecy of Koike-ya Inc.
Koike-ya Inc.’s salt and seaweed flavor potato chips

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:30 JST, September 28, 2025

Koike-ya Inc., a pioneer in Japanese potato chips, launched its “salt and seaweed” flavor in 1962. Now it has sold 5.7 billion bags of the flavor.

Company founder Kazuo Koike hit upon the idea for the product when he stopped by an izakaya that was serving handmade chips. Surprised by how delicious they were, he decided to start selling potato chips at scale. As he wanted a flavor tailored to Japanese tastes, he chose nori seaweed as the key ingredient. Chili pepper was also added as a secret ingredient, giving the chips a clean, crisp aftertaste.

The salt and seaweed flavor exploded in popularity. However, as production was limited because the chips were being made by hand by artisans, supply couldn’t keep up with demand. To address this, Koike traveled to the United States to study how an automated fryer worked, which led to one being developed in Japan. By 1967, he was mass-producing potato chips, dramatically increasing turnout.

Sales continued to rise steadily for many years afterward. However, in recent years the competition has been intense. In a move to escape low prices, the company started to develop high-value-added products.

It introduced a new production method aimed at replicating hand-frying, and in 2017 launched its “Koikeya Pride Potato” brand. Costing 30%-50% more than the company’s other similar products, the brand achieved its first-year sales target of ¥2 billion in just six months. Since then, the company has continued refining its production methods, such as by frying in stages at three different temperatures to prevent flavor loss.

The company will continue developing new seaweed and salt flavors to match the times.

“We want to show consumers Koike-ya’s commitment to quality,” said an employee in the company’s marketing division.