Chuoken Senbei, Inc.

Raise Up Smiles
We make smiles to spread to people just as steam raises up mochi.

WHAT IS SENBEI

Senbei, often called "rice crackers" in English, has been enjoyed as traditional confectionery by Japanese people over the centuries. It is made from rice which is historically the most important agricultural product in Japan. It is produced by baking or frying rice dough and flavoring it with salt or soy sauce. The rice crackers are popular as souvenir or gift because they are loved by people of all ages and the shelf life is quite long.

HISTORY AND MISSION

CHUOKEN SENBEI was founded by Yoichi Chikuma in 1923 when he moved to Tokyo. Yoichi named the brand CHUOKEN after his dream that the brand would be a center shop of rice cracker producers. (CHUO means "center" and KEN means "shop" in Japanese.) Since then, we have produced rice crackers for approximately 100 years over four generations. Our mission has always been to create the moment of joy and happiness with our rice crackers, which is expressed in a phrase as "Raise Up Smiles."

PASSION FOR THE QUALITY

Quality is our NO.1 priority. In order to accomplish our mission, we always seek the best quality of our products. All of our rice, the most important ingredient for rice crackers, used for our products are made in Japan. Moreover, our passion for the quality ended up with purchasing rice only from the contract farmers in the north region of Japan which climate is ideal for the development of rice.

SAFETY FIRST

Safety is as important as the quality for us. If the quality is regarded as the central pillar of a house, the safety is the foundation on which the central pillar is built. Our facilities are operated in accordance with the international standard of food safety program where the HACCP system is implemented throughout the production process. Our facilities were certified in accordance with ISO22000 in 2013.

OUR PRODUCTS

Two different sents of seven confections each "Hanairo Shion"

HANAIRO SHION consists of two different sets of seven confections each (rice crackers and soba cookie). Enjoy the color and the shape of each confection as well as its taste. Hanairo Shion is named after a flower called "shion" which color is Japanese traditional purple. As the flowers bloom while overlapping, we wish that Hanairo Shion connects people.

Unique combination of ingredients in an one-bite-sized rice cracker "Kumitte"

KUMITTE is the assortment of six kinds of one-bite-sized rice crackers individually packaged. Those six tastes are made by combining the multiple ingredients which are classic, healthy, exciting, or natural. Enjoy the variety of unique tastes such as seaweed and dashi, almonds and maple syrup, shrimp and lemon, etc.

The classic Okaki"Ine no Neiro"

INE NO NEIRO is the most classic rice cracker in our series. It has six classic tastes: seaweed, soy sauce, granulated sugar, yuzu and shichimi pepper, sakura shrimp and sesame. We have a strong commitment to its texture as the product name metaphorically refers to the bite sound. The surface is crunchy but its inside is soft and crispy. Enjoy the taste of Japanese tradition.

Nonsweet Biscotti made of brown rice "Risocotti"

RISOCOTTI is a rice cracker made of brown rice, inspired by an Italian traditional confectionery, biscotti. It is as hard as biscotti and as great with coffee as biscotti. The more you chew, the more the aroma of brown rice and peanuts fills your mouth. Enjoy your breaktime with our Risocotti.

What we can do to decrease food loss"Kakecco"

KAKECCO is a series of rice crackers which are chipped or broken in our production process. It is both ecologically and economically friendly so it is perfect for daily use or small gift to someone close. 3% of the total sales of Kakecco is donated to World Vision Japan, an international non-government organization, for food and water.