is a brand of
instant ramen noodles,
cup noodles, and
Yakisoba
''Yakisoba'' ( ja, 焼きそば ), "fried noodle", is a Japanese noodle stir-fried dish. Usually, soba noodles are made from buckwheat flour, but soba in yakisoba are Chinese noodles (Chuuka soba) made from wheat flour, typically flavored with ...
produced by
Toyo Suisan of
Tokyo, Japan. The ''Maruchan'' brand is used for noodle products in Japan, and as the operating name for Toyo Suisan's division in the United States, Maruchan Inc. In 1972, Toyo Suisan entered the American market with Maruchan USA, and in 1977, established a plant in
Irvine, California. Maruchan has other plants in
Richmond, Virginia
(Thus do we reach the stars)
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, mapsize = 250 px
, map_caption = Location within Virginia
, pushpin_map = Virginia#USA
, pushpin_label = Richmond
, pushpin_m ...
, and one in
Bexar County, Texas
Bexar County ( or ; es, Béxar ) is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. It is in South Texas and its county seat is San Antonio.
As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,009,324. Bexar County is included in the San Antonio–New Bra ...
. Maruchan produces over 3.6 billion packages of ramen noodle soup a year. In the
United States and
Mexico, Maruchan ramen is widely popular.
History
Toyo Suisan Kaisha, Ltd of
Tokyo, Japan, founded on March 28, 1953, is a consumer
packaged foods company in Japan. Toyo Suisan's effort to become an international food company brought them to the United States, where, in 1972, they established Maruchan USA. At first, Maruchan USA was only a marketing company, importing and distributing ramen from Japan. After operating for five years as a distributor of imported products, Maruchan built its own manufacturing facility in
Irvine, California, in 1977, where it began producing Maruchan brand ramen. Since 1977 Maruchan has grown steadily and has become an industry leader in North America, alongside other instant noodle brands such as
Top Ramen and
Sapporo Ichiban.
Name
Maruchan is a Japanese word composed of two parts, maru and chan. Maru means round, as in the shape of a ball or a happy child's face. In Japanese, round has a connotation of friendliness. The word
chan
Chan may refer to:
Places
*Chan (commune), Cambodia
*Chan Lake, by Chan Lake Territorial Park in Northwest Territories, Canada
People
*Chan (surname), romanization of various Chinese surnames (including 陳, 曾, 詹, 戰, and 田)
*Chan Caldwel ...
is an
honorific suffix, used affectionately for a child or as a term of endearment.
See also
*
List of instant noodle brands
*
References
{{authority control
Companies based in Tokyo
Japanese brand foods
Japanese noodles
Food and drink companies of Japan
Instant noodle brands
Food and drink companies established in 1972
Japanese companies established in 1972
es:Maruchan
ja:東洋水産
