--- title: "Japanese Drink Lurking in China for 22 Years Begins to Worry" description: "Yakult, a Japanese probiotic drink often mistaken for a domestic Chinese brand, is facing declining sales and factory closures in China. Despite its historical success, the company struggles with changing consumer perceptions and increased competition in the lactic acid bacteria beverage market." author: "李东阳" publisher: "New Distribution" email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com" telephone: "+8615854817671" published: "2024-12-29" language: "en" canonical: "https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/japanese-drink-lurking-in-china-for-22-years-begins-to-worry-046139c1/" markdown: "https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/japanese-drink-lurking-in-china-for-22-years-begins-to-worry-046139c1.md" original_source: "https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/9-wxR51AYTwq9c2HA8b9Lw" translation: "https://xinjignxiao.com/zh/articles/%E6%BD%9C%E4%BC%8F%E4%B8%AD%E5%9B%BD22%E5%B9%B4%E7%9A%84%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E9%A5%AE%E6%96%99-%E5%BC%80%E5%A7%8B%E7%9D%80%E6%80%A5%E4%BA%86-046139c1.md" attribution: "New Distribution — https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/japanese-drink-lurking-in-china-for-22-years-begins-to-worry-046139c1/" usage_policy: "https://xinjignxiao.com/ai-policy.txt" --- # Japanese Drink Lurking in China for 22 Years Begins to Worry > Yakult, a Japanese probiotic drink often mistaken for a domestic Chinese brand, is facing declining sales and factory closures in China. Despite its historical success, the company struggles with changing consumer perceptions and increased competition in the lactic acid bacteria beverage market. Mentioning Yakult is likely to evoke memories that consumers had long forgotten. "Have you drunk it today?" "Have you had your Yakult today?" Seeing these two classic slogans, do you feel a stir in your DNA? The first phrase has almost become a secret code understood only in Cantonese-speaking regions, where people often call it Yiliketo. Mixed among domestic lactic acid bacteria drinks like Wahaha, Junbaole, and Guangming, Yakult's packaging is highly recognizable; even without product information, one can identify it at a glance by the bottle's silhouette. However, many people do not know that this "thick-browed, big-eyed" drink is a genuine Japanese brand, even a "national beverage" in its home country, but it has been mistaken for a domestic product over the years. Only recently, news of Yakult announcing the closure of its Shanghai factory after 20 years and the disbanding of over a thousand employees has sparked renewed discussion. In turbulent times, Yakult, which once sold 40 million bottles a day globally, is now tripped up by its own success, with declining sales, layoffs, and factory closures casting a shadow of uncertainty. What exactly is happening to the "everyone's favorite" Yakult? **No one is always riding the wave, and the beverage industry is no exception.** According to media reports, on December 6, Yakult Honsha announced the closure of its Shanghai factory, which produces the lactic acid bacteria drink Yakult. Production at the plant will cease on the same day, with production to be transferred to other domestic bases in China, such as the Tianjin and Wuxi factories. Image source: Nandu Wan Cai She The reason given is relatively dignified, stating it is part of promoting operational reform, improving production efficiency through restructuring, and integrating resource allocation to further increase sales and performance. **Whether Yakult is about to exit the historical stage has become people's biggest doubt!** In the FMCG industry, closing factories is not uncommon, especially when the market environment is under pressure and cost reduction and efficiency improvement become lifelines; large food and beverage companies often make such adjustments. But all signs indicate that Yakult, once advancing rapidly, is going through a difficult phase. As a pioneer and leader in probiotic drinks, Yakult actually originated from the research of a Japanese medical doctor. At that time, poor environmental hygiene in Japan led to widespread intestinal diseases, and Yakult's emergence took on the responsibility of improving national health. For this reason, Yakult, holding high the concept of "health," quickly established a foothold in its home market. In 2002, Yakult set its sights on the vast Chinese mainland market and even gave itself a very local name, "Yiliketo." Image source: Xiaohongshu @ Badachu Han Bing The simple packaging and easy-to-understand product name led many consumers to mistake it for a "domestic product." At that time, Yakult seized on the "health" pursuit that domestic consumers cared about, targeted families, emphasized the use of high-quality domestic water sources, and quickly won people's favor through a friendly "mom delivery" marketing model. **Coinciding with a blank period in the Chinese market for probiotic drinks, Yakult faced almost no competitive pressure.** Subsequently, one sales miracle after another told of Yakult's success, from an average daily sales of about 60,000 bottles to a peak of 7.609 million bottles in 2020, Yakult's "little red bottle" entered countless households. According to official website information, during its 20-year rapid development period, Yakult built 6 major production bases, over 53 branch (subsidiary) companies, and employed 6,000 staff. But problems have been persistent, and Yakult's recent operational dynamics reveal that the company is implementing cost reduction and efficiency measures, feeling the chill of changes in the macro environment. The most headache-inducing issue is the fundamental problem: sales are weakening. In 2018, Yakult's average daily sales in China were 7.526 million bottles. However, in 2023, Yakult Honsha management revealed in response to investor questions that in January 2023, Yakult's daily sales in the Chinese market were approximately 5.32 million bottles; in February, approximately 4.25 million; and in March, approximately 5.06 million. Compared with the peak period, Yakult's performance is clearly not ideal. In fact, besides facing competition from peers like Yili and Mengniu, the slowdown of the lactic acid bacteria beverage track is the fundamental issue. In the beverage market, finding the right product positioning is the most basic survival rule. Yakult's advantage lies here; its official website's corporate philosophy, "Continuously exploring life sciences to contribute to the health and well-being of people worldwide," is resounding. If not explicitly stated as a beverage company, you might not think of it. As mentioned earlier, Yakult was created to solve health problems, and after entering the Chinese market, its product functions and marketing activities have all revolved around the concept that "probiotics are beneficial for gut health." For a long time, probiotics were synonymous with "true health." But water can carry a boat and also overturn it; the bubble is entering a phase of increasing fermentation. **As consumers become more professional, Yakult's "health concept" has frequently been questioned.** According to the current Shanghai pilot beverage grading system, Yakult's little red bottle is classified as D-grade, the least recommended. Even more absurd, in 2021, Yakult promoted that probiotics could prevent COVID-19 and was fined 450,000 yuan. Although it apologized, its desperate move not only became a laughingstock in the industry but also damaged its brand image. Image source: Weibo @ Sina News The formula of many lactic acid bacteria drinks on the market is basically: water, white sugar, other sweeteners + milk powder + one or more lactic acid bacteria + other additives (dietary fiber, pectin, flavorings, etc.). As multiple studies on probiotics have been published, their health halo has gradually been punctured. Many authoritative figures believe that there is currently no conclusive evidence that probiotic drinks are beneficial to human health. **"Healthy drinks" may not be healthy, which is a boomerang thrown by the times.** Besides Yakult, which bears the brunt, the entire lactic acid bacteria beverage market has been significantly affected. According to data from MaxWin Brand CT, since 2022, the lactic acid bacteria beverage category has shown a downward trend in both average price and market share. Among the top ten brands in the lactic acid bacteria beverage market in 2023, brands such as Yakult, Mengniu, and Wahaha all experienced a decline in market share. On social media, many consumers complained that the lactic acid bacteria drinks they bought to aid digestion instead caused bloating, and over time, some even gained weight. There are also mothers sharing that they regularly gave their children lactic acid bacteria drinks to aid digestion, only to be criticized by doctors, saying that drinking too much is useless. Once a product impression is formed, it is difficult to remove. For lactic acid bacteria drinks, since they have long touted the health concept, they need time to catch up on homework, fulfill promises to consumers, and complete a comeback. Otherwise, they will not only be exhausted from fending off external attacks but also fall into a helpless situation. Maintaining an undefeated myth in the turbulent beverage market for decades, Yakult has been successful, but the problem is not over; the "health" traffic password has failed to generate new growth points. Yakult is not unaware of this; it has repeatedly made new attempts beyond the "little red bottle," such as launching a low-sugar little blue bottle, a 50 billion live bacteria little gold bottle, and a peach-flavored little pink bottle, seeking a way to break the deadlock. Image source: Xiaohongshu netizen According to Charles Handy's second curve theory of enterprise development, if a curve reflects the law of enterprise growth and development, any growth curve will slide past the vertex of the parabola and then level off, decline, or even disappear. To maintain sustained growth, a company must find a new growth curve before the first curve declines and disappears. **This is exactly the situation Yakult faces. Even if you pamper a piece of land like an emperor, output will quickly reach its limit. Similarly, this is just a sub-sector of the beverage track, and its scale is visibly limited.** Looking closely at this year's beverage industry development, similar concerns are not unfounded. For example, in April this year, Nongfu Spring unexpectedly launched a green-cap purified water. Zhong Shanshan mentioned: "If you want a bit of sweetness, choose the green bottle purified water for taste; if you want health, drink the red bottle natural water." The reason is simple: "More children make for better fights." Some time ago, there was news that Wahaha was entering the mineral water market. Although some media verified that this was not a new product, the intention of various companies to diversify their product lines is clear enough. Similar examples are numerous, such as herbal tea giant Wanglaoji, which fully unleashed the infinite potential of its big single product, allowing one product to span multiple cycles. But with the reshaping of the consumer market, Wanglaoji has to find new growth points. Now the same problem is placed before Yakult. Market changes and declining sales force it to make changes. This time, the closure of the Shanghai factory may just be the beginning, and more severe tests lie ahead. **The days of not upgrading packaging for decades and living more and more comfortably are gone forever.** On social media, many netizens sent blessings to Yakult, saying it is their children's favorite drink and irreplaceable, hoping to see a better Yakult in the future; others said it is too sweet and they have quit as they age, and the taste of childhood can only be used for nostalgia. Entrepreneur Kazuo Inamori once said: When encountering difficulties that are hard to overcome and thinking "it's already over," that is not the end, but precisely the starting point for a new beginning. Perhaps in the future, the memory of "Have you had your Yakult today?" will shine with new brilliance! **【New Order · Symbiosis】The 10th China FMCG Innovation Conference** **Time: March 17-19, 2025** **Location: Chengdu, China** --- ## Copyright and AI use This article is sourced from New Distribution. Search, quotation, summarization, and model training are permitted, but every use must credit New Distribution and retain the canonical source URL. Contact: zhaobo258@gmail.com · +86 158 5481 7671