New “Oi Ocha” x Shohei Ohtani project launches.
Ito En, Ltd. (President: Daisuke Honjo; Headquarters: Tokyo; hereinafter “Ito En”) has announced that “Oi Ocha”—the world’s No. 1 unsweetened green tea brand—will enter into partnership agreements starting in 2025 with Major League Baseball (MLB) and the Los Angeles Dodgers, the team to which Shohei Ohtani belongs. The deal involves an agreement with MLB covering both Japan and the U.S., as well as a specific agreement with the Dodgers for the Los Angeles region; additionally, “Oi Ocha” will become the Official Green Tea of MLB in Japan.
Further Accelerating the Globalization of “Oi Ocha”
Ito En, the company behind the world’s leading unsweetened green tea brand “Oi Ocha,” established a local subsidiary in New York in 2001, marking the start of its full-scale drive to become a “Global Tea Company.” To further communicate the value of tea to the world, the company signed a global ambassador agreement with Shohei Ohtani in 2024 and has since been conducting promotional activities both in Japan and overseas.
The partnership originated from the fact that Ohtani is a devoted consumer of Ito En products. Building on this foundation, the company has now concluded a comprehensive agreement—encompassing MLB and the Dodgers with Ohtani at the core—to further strengthen the global strategy for “Oi Ocha.”
As part of this agreement, Ito En will also launch a campaign offering a chance to win tickets to the “MLB WORLD TOUR TOKYO SERIES by Guggenheim” (to be held at Tokyo Dome from March 15 to 19, 2025) and exclusive “Ito En x MLB TOKYO SERIES” merchandise.
Shohei Ohtani x Oi Ocha Special Website URL: https://www.itoen.jp/oiocha/ohtani/
Coinciding with this campaign, Ito En will roll out new visuals featuring Shohei Ohtani—clad in a Los Angeles Dodgers uniform and swinging his bat powerfully—leveraging the league rights secured through the MLB partnership. Set against a vibrant blue background, the design features the “MLB™ WORLD TOUR™ TOKYO SERIES by Guggenheim” logo alongside the new haiku—”Always, tea is by my side”—which generated significant buzz when unveiled last year. Marking the second year of the partnership with Shohei Ohtani, the design symbolizes the powerful global expansion of “Oi Ocha” as the Official Green Tea of MLB in Japan.
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“Oi Ocha”: The World’s No. 1 Green Tea Beverage Brand
“Oi Ocha,” the world’s leading unsweetened green tea beverage brand, has surpassed 45 billion units in cumulative sales since its launch in 1989 (as of the end of December 2024).
“Tea is deeply ingrained in our lives as a communication tool that connects people; it is a familiar beverage, as reflected in the Japanese phrase nichijo sahan (meaning ‘an everyday occurrence’ or literally ‘tea and rice’). Since launching our predecessor product—the world’s first green tea beverage, ‘Canned Sencha,’ in 1985—the ‘Oi Ocha’ brand has continued to grow. This growth is underpinned by our technical expertise in evolving the product to match changing consumption habits over time, and our ability to source high-quality raw materials (tea leaves) through initiatives such as our tea-growing region development programs. The value of ‘Oi Ocha’ is also recognized internationally; our customer base is steadily growing in regions such as North America and Southeast Asia, and as of 2024, the product is sold in over 40 countries and regions.” “Moving forward, as we strive to realize our long-term vision of becoming a ‘Global Tea Company,’ we will promote ‘Oi Ocha’—a brand representing Japan—to the world. We will also engage with tea cultures across different regions and leverage the Ito En Group’s technology and value chain to create new tea cultures and markets on a global scale. Through the strong partnerships we have built with all our stakeholders since our founding, we remain committed to contributing to the healthy and enriched lives of customers in Japan and around the world.”
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