TAKARA HOLDINGS INC.

Karaoke singers can find courage in bottles from Takara Holdings. Through its Takara Shuzo subsidiary, the company is a leading distiller of shochu , a traditional Japanese liquor. It also produces sake, mirin (a sweet cooking wine used for seasoning), happoshu (a low-malt beverage), and low-alcohol beverages, including fruit-based and vitamin-fortified drinks. A second subsidiary, Takara Bio, conducts gene research and is a leading Japanese supplier of reagents for DNA research; it also offers select pharmaceutical, nutritional, and scientific instrument products. Takara Holdings also owns health food, printing, transportation, import, engineering, and technology businesses, among others.