Takii Seed celebrates 180th & 25th anniversary

It was a memorable event at Takii in De Kwakel, the Netherlands, yesterday. Takii Seed celebrates its 180th anniversary this year. Takii Europe, with has its head office in The Kwakel, celebrates its 25th anniversary. Therefore Mr. Takii, a Japanese delegation and employees from all over Europe travelled to The Kwakel. The company welcomed a large number of guests and breeders as well, and several lectures and presentations were given.

Mattheo Antonelli

History
180 years ago, in 1835, mr. Jisaburo Ohmoriya (Takii Jisaburo, Sr.) started distributing seeds to farmers. This was the beginning of Takii's seed business. The company grew to a mail order business. In the second half of the 20th century, the vegetable breeding started. In 1982 the company opened an American office and in 1990 the Netherlands became their home for the European market. This week, both anniversaries were celebrated in The Kwakel, Netherlands.

Sunrich Orange

Cannova

Vegetable
The celebration event this week took during the Dutch open field days, where several vegetable breeders showcase their new varieties. Takii is a large player in vegetable seeds. Mattheo Antonelli is a representative of Takii in Italy. "The Japanese are forerunners in the field of rootstock," says Antonelli, "and Takii was one of the first companies that became big with the production of it. Besides that, the taste is leading. In Europe, they are often focused on a high production and a high resistance. In Japan, taste is King." As an example, Antonelli de Momotaro shows a tomato: a pink tomato with a special structure and rich in the popular fifth taste sensation Umami.

Ornamentals
But not just vegetable seeds, ornamentals play a vital role in the company. The company is currently leading the market with key products: sunflower varieties (Sunrich F1 series), Lisianthus, Viola, pot Gerbera, Canna and ornamental cabbages. In this celebration week, there has been special attention for Cannova (a series of cannas) and the Sunrich Orange. It's the world’s first downy mildew high resistant variety for ornamental Helianthus and in the celebration year there's special attention for this flower.

Momotaro 'Umami' tomato

Denichi Takii, the CEO of Takii

Antonelli:"Because vegetables and fruits are expensive in Japan, these kind of plants can increasingly often be found in consumers' homes."

For more information:
Takii Europe B.V.
Main office Hoofdweg 19
1424 PC De Kwakel
The Netherlands
Tel: +31(0)297-345 700
Fax: +31(0)297-345 658
www.takii.eu