Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co., Ltd. (President and CEO: Shinichi Hirose, hereinafter "Tokio Marine & Nichido") and digital platform provider STANDAGE Co., Ltd. (President and CEO: Akinori Adachi, hereinafter "STANDAGE") have launched a joint project to support the export of Japanese food products (hereinafter "this project"), and will support the export of Japanese food products by assisting small and medium-sized enterprises across Japan that have not been able to engage in exports until now.

1. Background and Objectives
With the domestic market expected to shrink due to factors such as population decline, the number of small and medium-sized enterprises handling Japanese food products that aim to expand into overseas markets is increasing year by year.
In this context, when small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) attempt to expand overseas, they are often reluctant to take on the risk of exporting large quantities at once, and many prefer to start experimentally with exports in small quantities (small lots).
On the other hand, small-lot businesses are often unprofitable for companies involved in export brokerage, and developing overseas sales channels is a significant challenge for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). We also believe that we are not adequately providing insurance to these SMEs.
Tokio Marine & Nichido and Standage have previously collaborated on demonstration experiments (*1) aimed at realizing a new trade settlement system. In this project, they have combined their respective digital technologies and solutions to enable exports from small lots and the arrangement of marine insurance, thereby promoting the export of Japanese food products by small and medium-sized enterprises and expanding the base of exporting companies.

2. Overview of this project
Tokio Marine & Nichido and Standage have announced that they will begin offering rapid transportation of small-lot products and easy insurance coverage through the development of export routes to overseas restaurants, the establishment of a temperature-controlled air freight network, and the integration of their systems. As the first phase, they will provide support for the export of sake via temperature-controlled air freight.

(1) Realizing one-stop small-lot export and insurance arrangements.
Standage has developed and operates a new cross-border e-commerce site that allows overseas restaurants to directly place small orders with Japanese sake breweries. Overseas restaurants, as buyers, will be able to choose from a wide variety of products from numerous Japanese sake breweries and brands. Furthermore, by transporting the products via temperature-controlled air freight, it will be possible to export even precious unpasteurized sake in a timely manner while maintaining its quality (*2).
Tokyo Marine & Nichido will utilize APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) to integrate Standage's trade agency functions with its own online application system for marine cargo insurance. This will simplify trade operations, including automated marine insurance applications, and enable the arrangement of marine insurance for small-lot shipments.

(2) Implementation of comprehensive export support
Standage supports the overseas branding of production areas, sake breweries, and brands by creating content such as the history and stories of each prefecture, sake brewery, and representative brand, as well as tasting reports by experts, and posting it on e-commerce sites.
Tokyo Marine & Nichido has concluded comprehensive cooperation agreements with many local governments, local financial institutions, and chambers of commerce related to regional revitalization. Leveraging these networks, Tokyo Marine & Nichido will propose trade support services in collaboration with Standage and provide risk management support to individual companies in regional areas.
Tokyo Marine & Nichido will comprehensively promote trade for small and medium-sized enterprises by introducing partners who can help with obtaining certifications such as GAP and HACCP necessary for food exports and support business efficiency improvements, as well as providing "overseas expansion support services" (including e-learning basic courses on trade practices and export-related research) as an ancillary service to insurance.

We plan to have a pre-opening of our e-commerce site in March 2023, with official operations starting in April (as of the end of January, we have tentatively secured contracts with more than 15 sake breweries in Japan).

3. Future Plans
First, we will strive to establish a solid sales channel to overseas restaurants through the export of Japanese sake. Then, in the second phase, we will expand our product range to include local specialty products (agricultural and marine products, processed foods, traditional crafts such as sake vessels), aiming to realize a comprehensive cultural dissemination platform that sends Japanese food culture and traditions overseas.
Tokio Marine & Nichido and Standage will contribute to supporting the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises nationwide and to regional revitalization through this project.

*1: News release dated December 27, 2021, "Conducting a demonstration experiment to realize a new trade settlement system"
https://www.tokiomarine-nichido.co.jp/company/release/pdf/211227_01.pdf

*2: Orders for sake can be placed from 3 bottles (6 bottles at the start of the service), enabling small-lot orders and expanding the range of choices for buyers. In addition, this is the industry's first "door-to-door" small-lot temperature-controlled air freight transport service, with all transport completed in 5 to 14 days. In addition to maintaining quality, it also makes it possible to export unpasteurized sake, which is difficult to handle.

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