FOLSOM — During Tuesday’s Folsom City Council meeting, Mayor Sarah Aquino and the council recognized Kikkoman Foods Plant Manager Kiyotaka Nagai for his exceptional leadership and lasting contributions to both the company and the Folsom community. Nagai, who has managed the Folsom facility since 2018, will soon return to Japan to begin his next assignment with the international company.
“We have been so fortunate the past seven years to have Mr. Nagai, a very, very active and engaged plant manager,” Aquino said during the presentation. “Your contributions have enriched our community beyond the plant gates—from your participation in events like the Folsom Christmas Tree Lighting and the Folsom Pro Rodeo to your support of Kikkoman scholarships at Folsom High School and contributions to the new Folsom Lake College Science Building. Your leadership has reflected a deep commitment to the community.”
Since arriving in Folsom, Nagai has guided the Kikkoman facility to record-breaking production levels, new sustainability milestones, and stronger ties with local schools and organizations. His leadership helped the company mark its 25th anniversary in Folsom in 2023, a celebration that reflected not only Kikkoman’s growth but also its partnership with the community that welcomed it nearly three decades ago.
Accepting the recognition from city leaders, Nagai expressed gratitude for the opportunity to live and work in Folsom. “I’m glad to have this recognition very much,” he said. “I have tried to be a member of the local community. Kikkoman has a policy to be a valuable member for the local area, and we will continue to do this.”
Nagai also reflected on Kikkoman’s long history and its emphasis on communication and respect. “We started our business in Folsom twenty-seven years ago, and that policy is still the same,” he said. “We began a coaching program to help us communicate very well and continue our policy of respecting others.”
As a lighthearted close to the ceremony, Aquino presented Nagai with a gift from a local favorite, Snook’s Chocolates, noting that “chocolate and soy sauce go very well together.”
Kikkoman’s Folsom facility, located on Glenn Drive, first opened in 1998 and remains one of the company’s most advanced manufacturing plants worldwide. The 95,000-square-foot facility represented a $46 million investment at its opening and became Kikkoman’s second U.S. production site following its original plant in Walworth, Wisconsin.
The company chose Folsom for its expansion due to the city’s water quality and its central location between Northern and Southern California markets. Over the years, the plant has produced more than 5 million gallons of naturally brewed soy sauce annually—roughly one-fifth of Kikkoman’s total U.S. output—solidifying Folsom’s role in the company’s global operations.
Founded in Japan in the 1600s, Kikkoman began as a family-run soy sauce maker and has grown into a worldwide leader in Asian seasonings and condiments, with production facilities in Japan, the United States, Singapore, Taiwan, and the Netherlands.
As the Folsom community bids farewell to Nagai and his wife, Tomomi, city leaders and residents expressed their gratitude for his years of dedication and the example he set in corporate citizenship and community partnership.
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