Panasonic Corporation announced that it has decided to invest in DayBreak Co., Ltd., a solution provider focusing on special freezing technology, through a corporate venture capital fund, commonly known as the Panasonic Kurashi Visionary Fund, jointly managed by Panasonic and SBI Investment Co., Ltd.
With a mission to Create a Better Future from Producers to Consumers, DayBreak aims to solve labor shortages, food loss, freshness preservation, and other food-related challenges for ensuring a better future through its special freezing solutions. In addition to selling special freezing equipment developed by the company, it also operates a food laboratory that provides comprehensive support to customers entering the frozen food business by offering recipe development assistance and consulting services to improve manufacturing operations. DayBreak has also established an open innovation community known as the Frozen Business Family Association to study the next generation of frozen business with its customers. Through the sharing of knowledge, the association aims to improve the overall quality of frozen food.
Panasonic offers a wide range of products related to food infrastructure, including cooking appliances as well as B2B cold-chain-related products such as commercial freezing and refrigeration display cases mainly for the Japanese and US markets. Panasonic will strive to create a cold chain that adds value for both food producers and consumers by exploring how it can create synergies with DayBreak to transform the frozen food distribution system.
Comments from Kunio Gohara, General Manager of the Corporate Venture Capital Office, Panasonic Corporation
The growing e-commerce market for food amplifies the significance of our refrigeration, freezing, and other freshness preservation technologies, taste-preserving defrosting technologies, as well as our ability to provide solutions across the food distribution supply chain. We expect this investment in DayBreak to bring new value to both producers and consumers, and to accelerate innovation in frozen food distribution, enabling customers to enjoy even more fresh and delicious frozen foods.
Comments from Masayuki Kinoshita, Representative Director and CEO of DayBreak Co., Ltd.
Our special freezing technology has enabled us to freeze foods that were previously difficult to freeze, addressing the challenges facing the food industry, such as expanding distribution channels, food loss, and employment. We believe this investment reflects the high expectations for the growth potential of the cold chain market, our unique solutions, and our community. As a result, we have renewed our commitment to meeting those expectations.
To become a global player, we will strengthen our partnership with Panasonic and upgrade the freezing business by switching to CFC-free special freezing equipment and expanding our food platform.
