Allergen-Free Foods Are Growing, But Can They Shake Off the 'Substitute' Label?

このページを日本語で読む

Allergen-free foods are becoming increasingly available in Japan. In 2025, Asahi Group Japan released a yeast-derived non-dairy milk that can be consumed just like regular milk, while Kewpie developed an egg-free mayonnaise now used in school lunches.

Asahi Group Japan's "LIKE MILK" is a drink free from 28 allergenic ingredients, including milk and eggs. It is the country's first yeast-derived milk-like beverage, offering a natural sweetness and a taste that lives up to its name.

The product was developed by FCH, Asahi's "cross-company new value creation project." The team used yeast, a key ingredient in beer brewing, to create a material with emulsifying properties that can bind water and oil.

Enjoying Food Together

The company encountered children with food allergies during product development, and that experience became their driving motivation. One girl with a milk allergy was undergoing a supervised test to gradually increase her milk intake. As there was a risk that even an increase of just 0.01 milliliters could trigger anaphylactic shock, a doctor had to be present throughout the process.

Tomohiro Hata, Senior Manager of FCH, recalled: "At nursery schools, children with allergies eat in a separate room to avoid their food getting mixed together. We wanted to let them eat happily together at one table."

Roughly 1 to 2% of the Japanese population has some form of food allergy, with around 10% of infants affected. A 2022 survey by the Japan School Health Association, based on responses from 25,466 schools (a 77.6% response rate), found that 526,705 students had food allergies, accounting for 6.3% of students in responding schools.

*Eggs are among the most common food allergens in Japan. (File photo by Erika Varga, Pixabay)*

Personal Stories Inspire Change

Kewpie's "Egg Care" is a mayonnaise-like condiment that contains no eggs but delivers a rich, full flavor. Using plant-based ingredients and proprietary technology, it recreates the taste of traditional Japanese mayonnaise. Its development was personal: a researcher at the company had a child who developed a food allergy.

First released for school lunches in 2014, it became available to the general public the following year. Tomomi Nakamura from the marketing department's Household Products Team explains, "We don't want anyone to give up mayonnaise." Amid growing demand, the product was upsized from 205 grams to 305 grams in 2023.

Japan's Allergy Landscape

According to Japan's Consumer Affairs Agency's 2024 report on allergy food labeling, the most common allergen in Japan is eggs, cited in 26.7% of cases, followed by nuts such as walnuts at 24.6%, and milk at 13.4%. Wheat, peanuts, and fish roe each account for more than 5%.

In 2023, TableMark, part of Japan Tobacco (JT) Group, launched "BEYOND FREE," a frozen food brand free from animal-based ingredients and that also accounts for common allergens.

The lineup has expanded to around 50 items, including rice burgers, udon noodles, bread, cutlets, fried chicken, and desserts like rolled cakes. Prices are kept at around ¥500 (around $3) per item to ensure affordability for everyday use.

Junichi Takeda, Head of the Beyond Free Promotion Office, summed up the mission: "We want to eliminate the frustration of not being able to eat what you want."

Need for Strategic Branding

Yet allergen-free products still carry a strong perception of being made exclusively for people with food allergies, often seen as mere substitutes rather than choices in their own right. This image makes it difficult to reach a wider audience, even though a broader appeal is precisely what these products need to be commercially sustainable.

"LIKE MILK" takes a deliberate approach to this challenge. Instead of emphasizing its allergen-free credentials, the packaging highlights its high levels of zinc and dietary fiber — nutrients that are often hard to get from regular meals.

The goal is to attract health-conscious consumers, particularly women focused on wellness and beauty. Hata of Asahi explained: "We hope to expand by reaching people with high beauty and health awareness, creating a new source of revenue."

Takeda of TableMark sees a different but equally compelling angle: "In Japan, there is a culture of shojin cuisine [vegetarian Buddhist diet] embedded in our DNA," he said. "If we were to modernize shojin cuisine, it might look something like this, and we hope to spread that idea."