September 17, 2013

The Awarding of the New Zealand Order of Merit

Nippon Suisan Kaisha, Ltd. (Norio Hosomi, President and CEO, hereinafter called “Nissui”) has announced that Nissui Board Advisor Naoya Kakizoe has been awarded the New Zealand Order of Merit by the Government of New Zealand. The investiture ceremony was held at the Government House in the capital city of Wellington, on September 17, at 10:00 a.m., local time.

The New Zealand Order of Merit was instituted in 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, “for those persons who in any field of endeavor, have rendered meritorious and eminent endeavors, talents and contributions to the Crown and nation. Ordinarily, recipients are citizens of New Zealand and other Commonwealth realms, but as a foreign national, Mr. Kakizoe has received the same honor by being named an Honorary Member of this Order.

Nissui and New Zealand have a history of dealings with each other through which we have built up positive business relations, including the transfer of our trawling technologies and the production and sale of canned goods using mutton from New Zealand. In 2001, we welcomed the New Zealand-based Sealord Group, Ltd. as a member of the Nissui Group, and every year since 2002, we have accepted one or two young people from the indigenous Maori people for business trainings at Nissui. Nissui has also enriched friendly and cooperative relations through its sponsorship of New Zealand rugby. In 2012, Nissui was given a carving known as “Te Whare o Tangaroa” by Aotearoa Fisheries Limited, a Maori-owned fishing company. This was the first instance of this type of carving, revered by the Maori people, being donated to a foreign entity.

During his tenure as President and CEO of Nissui, Mr. Kakizoe, both as a member of the Japan-New Zealand Business Council and the Japan New Zealand Partnership Forum, and as a supporter of sports and other endeavors, devoted himself to the development and deepening of ties with New Zealand.

Comments by Mr. Kakizoe:

I wish to share this honor with all of the people who worked to help me over many years. Our two countries are located at opposite sides of a very large region, but I hope that we can continue to cooperate and to build a complementary relationship.

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