Masahiro Yoritama

“We want to make all food free.” From that wish, NINZIA Inc. succeeded in developing NinjaPaste, a food binder made from konjac. Made from 100% konjac, it has zero sugar and zero fat, and as a plant-based ingredient it is gluten-free. We had a long talk with CEO Masahiro Yoritama, who says it is an ingredient with great potential in today’s health- and environment-conscious times.

An ingredient that binds foods together while keeping their original flavor

NinjaPaste is a konjac-based food binding and forming ingredient. A binding and forming ingredient is a food that acts as a so-called “binder.” Binders are used in many foods, such as sweets, processed meat products, and fish paste products.

However, most of them are sugars such as starch syrup and sugar, fats such as butter, animal-based ingredients such as gelatin and eggs, wheat gluten, or chemically synthesized food additives. NinjaPaste’s challenge began with the question: “Couldn’t binders be made healthier?”

Take nut bars, popular as health foods, as an example. Most of those on the market today are held together and shaped with caramel, starch syrup, sugary wheat-flour dough like cookies, or chocolate that contains fat.

Nuts should be a healthy food, rich in dietary fiber, minerals, and other nutrients, yet the binder makes them high in calories and also makes the flavor of the ingredients harder to taste.

Made from 100% konjac, NinjaPaste contains no sugar or fat at all. It has almost zero calories and is gluten-free. It can bind through any process, whether heating, freezing, or drying, and once set, it does not fall apart. It is also tasteless and odorless, so it does not affect the flavor or aroma of the ingredients.
It is an ingredient that everyone can eat with peace of mind, from people struggling with high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, or allergies to people who “want to cut back on calories a little today.”

NinjaPaste is currently used in our own products, THE NUTS BAR and Veggie Jerky, and has also been adopted for hotel sweets, canned meat, and more.

Suited to people with all kinds of food cultures and eating habits

What we aim for is “a world where everyone can enjoy food without restrictions.” The joy of food lies not only in taste and aroma; texture and mouthfeel are also important.

“Isn’t that where the feeling of really eating comes from?” With that thought, we focused on texture. Food issues are drawing attention worldwide today, and there are many food tech companies using cutting-edge technology, but not many companies focus on the area of texture.

As its name suggests, NinjaPaste is a paste, so adjusting the water content creates all kinds of textures. For example, for foods like nuts where you want to bring out the texture of the ingredients, it works as a binder, and mixed into meat substitutes such as soy meat, it gives a springy, juicy mouthfeel. The textures it can create are endless.

To expand our sales channels not only in Japan but overseas, we actively take part in trade shows in various countries. In October 2022 we exhibited at a trade show in Dubai, UAE, and in May 2023 at Europe’s largest food tech exhibition, held in Spain, and both were well received. In North America, which we visited in July, there was particular interest in THE NUTS BAR, and we actually received orders.

With interest in healthy eating and natural foods rising worldwide, NinjaPaste, which suits diverse food cultures and eating habits such as vegan, vegetarian, and flexitarian, also pairs well with ingredients from around the world, and we see even more potential in it.

Aiming to distribute it as a product anyone can easily buy

Sydecas, our parent company, started out planning and selling clothing and accessories for nursing care. Seeing many people there who could not enjoy “food” was the starting point for developing NinjaPaste.

Nursing care and therapeutic foods today are properly calculated for nutritional value and come in many flavors. Yet in terms of texture, most are thick liquids or jellies, and many are hard to enjoy eating every day.

With NinjaPaste, it should be possible to make foods that are more enjoyable to eat, even for people receiving nursing care or recovering from illness. And that should also contribute to healthy eating for everyone. With that conviction, we are exploring all kinds of possibilities.

Going forward, we want to tell more food manufacturers about the benefits of NinjaPaste and have them adopt it, so that it can be distributed in products at prices anyone can easily afford. We want to expand the joy of food further. We will keep moving forward to deliver this ingredient full of potential to more people.

How We Used OIH

In 2020, we took part in the OIH acceleration program “OSAP” as a company selected for its 10th cohort. I feel that a great thing about OSAP is how rich its alumni support for graduates is after the program ends. I can talk to and consult with mentors and experts suited to my current business stage. Even after the program ended, it has been a big support for me.