Seminar by Dr. Maria Yotova (Ritsumeikan University) on October 14, 5th period 2022 titled "The rise of Bulgarian Yogurt as a Health: Creating Value in Food Business".

Students in the Graduate School of Economics; IBSP were treated to an exciting and informative lecture by Dr. Yotova on the subject matter of an iconic yogurt brand in Japan (Meiji’s Bulgaria Yoghurt) and traced its origins to a national food in Bulgari during the Soviet Communist Era. Yogurt was considered a nutritious food emblematic of the Soviet times when eating habits were changed and modified by a centralized political and ideological era. The yogurt was then exported to Japan in 1971 and it was picked up by Meiji’s management who, despite initial poor sales in Japan, persisted with the brand and it became a national hit that has stayed on the dietary meals of Japanese people ever since.

The seminar elicited many curious and passionate questions from the audience, including comparative ones like the differences between Bulgarian yogurt and Indian Lassi, or how Bulgarian yogurt can be marketed to Islamic markets (given that it is made from goats’ milk, to which Dr. Yotova shared that Bulgaria consists of 10% Muslims) and many other engaging questions.