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Tokyo—Space BD, a leading Japanese space startup, concluded a contract with MSD to begin a new collaboration of Space x Food, where the UNCHI-operated No. 1 popular in Osaka Human beings everybody noodles- ramen ingredients and logo plates, etc. will be launched into space and then returned to Earth.

 

 

UNCHI operates many popular ramen shops in Osaka boasting long lines, including -Human beings everybody noodles-, -The old man’s best swing-, and -The most desarted Ramen-Bar in the world-. UNCHI’s vision is to set up shop on the Moon and Mars before going to Tokyo or New York. As a first step to show UNCHI’s dedication to making their vision a reality, they decided to start this collaboration with Space BD to send the ramen ingredients (including noodles, soup, leeks, bamboo shoots, chashu pork, and ramen bowls) for Human beings everybody noodles- as well as logo plates into space during FY2023. After the return to Earth, UNCHI plans to use the ingredients returned from space to produce ramen bowls, which will be displayed together with the logo plates to give many people the opportunity to view them.
This project will be launched as a Space Delivery Project -RETURN to EARTH-, which has been led since 2021 by Space BD. This project has been used for research & development, education, PR, traditional crafts, entertainment, and many other uses, but this will be the first time that a food use will take place. Space BD will continue to run this project and provide a variety of launch opportunities with the aim of making space feel closer to home.

 

■Space Delivery Project “RETURN to EARTH”

This project makes use of the small simple exposure experiment device (ExBAS/developed jointly with JAXA) installed in the medium exposure experiment adapter (i-SEEP) of the ISS Kibo. Space BD called for participation among a wide range of organizations and is providing a variety of support, including the item selection, launch, and the return to Earth.

▼Space Delivery Project introductory video https://youtu.be/HCv3MBrVL6c

 

-Human beings everybody noodles-

Since the launch of the main store in Nishinakajima in Osaka in 2012, now there is also a store in Tokyo (Ebisu). The Osaka store is currently (as of March 2023) No. 1 in the Osaka ramen category on the gourmet site Tabelog, and reigns in the No. 1 position in the Osaka ramen category in the Ramen Database. This brand store features extra-thick chashu pork tenderized in a pressure cooker and topped with extra-large bamboo shoots that have had their scum removed for a long time in ultra-soft water, and within UNCHI this brand has the longest history as well as the longest lines. For more information see: http://www.jinrui-minamenrui.com/

 

■Comment from Takahiro Matsumura, Representative Director, UNCHI

Hello everyone! Ever since I was 10 years old my dream was to open a ramen shop, and I did so at 24. Before I knew it 10 years had passed, and now I am busily working every day towards my next dream: to have the very first ramen shop on Mars. The response I usually get is that people feel my dream is interesting, but a bit of a pipe dream. However, with this project, my brand will actually be going into space. I hope to share my joy at getting closer to Mars at the Osaka, Kansai, Japan World Expo (although I haven’t actually gotten an invitation to set up shop at the Expo). I hope that all of you read this article and it becomes a time for you to consider your own dreams and what excites you. That will be the best indicator of success for this project. Please keep your eye on us at UNCHI and our mission to “change the world with the power of ramen.”
For inquiries about a ramen franchise / Osaka, Kansai, Japan World Expo offer▼
Twitter：https://twitter.com/jinrui_mina_men
Youtube：https://www.youtube.com/@unchi7592

 

■Comment from Takamitsu Asano, Director, MSD

We at MSD provide the sherpa service to provide accompanying support for developing new businesses. A new business begins with carefully weaving together people’s thoughts to form an unprecedented new combination, such as Ramen x Space. The fact that Mr. Matsumura of -Human beings everybody noodles- and the leading space startup Space BD were able to make their new business a reality through our sherpa service marks the first step toward a new private space business in the inaugural year of private space market development, which is expected to begin in earnest from 2023. We hope to use this new combination as a first step to continuously create new combinations with those who are involved in the space business, with whom we share a common vision, to create unprecedented new business and value for the world.

 

■Comment from Kyohei Akaizawa, Business Development, Space BD

We are very pleased about this new collaboration with -Human beings everybody noodles- as part of our space utilization project.
Through this project, we will contribute to the realization of Mr. Matsumura’s mission to “change the world with the power of ramen” and his dream to open a shop on Mars. We will make every effort through this project to make space feel closer to home by surprising many people around the world and providing them with hopes, dreams, and other excitement.

 

■About MSD

MSD is a consumer marketing and R&D company that identifies the life issues (deep insights) latent in human life and contributes to solving them. In particular, MSD provides B2C business development support for B2B companies as well as for general consumers. In the space area MSD is providing support for this project under the slogan of “quality life in every environment.” MSD is supporting the creation of new businesses that solve life issues in space and on Earth through deep insights into space life, and supporting this project.

 

Company name: MSD Inc.
Headquarters: 8th floor, 1-13-10 Shibaura, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Representative: Taiki Kitajima, Executive Director
Established: December 18, 1996
Description of business:
1. Planning, development, manufacture, and sales of lifestyle-related products
including food products, cosmetics, home appliances, toiletries and healthcare
2. Planning, development, manufacture, and sales of life care products for specialized environments such as disaster prevention and space
3. E-commerce business
URL: https://msd1996.jp/

 

■About Space BD

We at Space BD are a one-stop provider of solutions for those in the space utilization field. Not only can we deliver payloads to space by a variety of methods and facilitate the use of International Space Station assets, but we can also assist with everything from business plans to hands-on technical operations. As of February 2023, Space BD’s performance record marked over 70 satellite projects and over 300 orders.

 

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