Japanese surimi product prices collectively increase, consumer-side pressure intensifies

Published Feb 1, 2026

Tridge summary

Core tip: The Japanese surimi market is experiencing a new wave of price increases. Amid sustained increases in raw material costs, labor, logistics, and energy expenses, several major Japanese surimi companies, including Maruha Nichiro and Nissui, have announced price hikes for their spring shipments, with the price increase range spreading from individual products to the entire industry.

Original content

As the largest seafood company globally in terms of revenue, Maruha announced that starting from April 1, it will increase the shipment prices of its fish paste products for the retail market, affecting multiple core products such as fish sausages and chikuwa (bamboo rolls), with an increase of approximately 2% to 7%. In its statement, the company directly stated that the price of fish paste raw materials has continued to rise, coupled with increases in fuel, packaging, logistics, and labor costs, as well as the prolonged weakening of the yen, making it "extremely difficult" to reduce costs internally alone. This statement is not an isolated case. The price increase actions in Japan's fish paste products industry are unfolding simultaneously. Sugiyo, the pioneer in the crab stick field, has announced that starting from March 1, it will implement a price increase of about 3% to 10% on its fish paste products. Horikawa, a fish paste products company in Niigata Prefecture, also ...

Source: Foodmate