Yuzaburo Mogi ’61

Yuzaburo Mogi is Honorary CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Kikkoman Corporation. Kikkoman, the world’s leading producer of soy sauce, opened its first U.S. plant in Walworth, Wisconsin in 1973, its second U.S. plant in Folsom, California in 1998, and is now constructing its third U.S. plant in Jefferson, Wisconsin. The company also has plants in Singapore, Taiwan, the Netherlands, China, and Brazil. 

Mr. Mogi joined the company in 1958. He was appointed President and CEO in 1995, and Chairman and CEO in 2004. He assumed his present position in 2011.

He graduated from Keio University in 1958 and earned an MBA from Columbia University in 1961. From 1994 to 2000, he served as a trustee of Columbia University, and in October 2000 he was appointed Trustee Emeritus. He is presently a member of the Columbia Business School Board. In 2024, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from Columbia Business School. He served as the Chairman of the Columbia Business School Club of Japan and now holds the title of Honorary Chairman. He also served as the President of the Columbia University Alumni Association of Japan and is now Honorary Chairman.

He was Chairman of the Japan Productivity Center from 2014 to 2025 and is now Honorary Chairman. He is Co-Representative of “ReIWA”, a nonprofit advocacy organization for institutional reforms and public policy in Japan. He also serves as Joint Chancellor of Japan Akademeia and Honorary Ambassador of the State of Wisconsin.

He served as Chairman of the Japan-Midwest U.S. Association from 2003 to 2019, Japanese Chairman of the Japanese-German Forum from 2002 to 2015, Japanese Chairman of the Korea-Japan Forum from 2003 to 2015, and Vice Chairman of Keizai Doyukai (Japan Association of Corporate Executives) from 1995 to 2003. 

He also worked for the Japanese government as Vice Chairman of the Central Council for Education, Chairman of the Council for Administrative Reduction and Efficiency, Chairman of the Council for Comprehensive Review of Administrative Expenditures, and Member of the Government Revitalization Unit.

He was awarded the Medal with Blue Ribbon of Japan in 1999, the Order of Orange Nassau of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 2003, the Commander’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany in 2006, and was named a Person of Cultural Merits of Japan in 2018.

He is married and has three children and six grandchildren.