Japanese Company Lasting 100 Years According to Buffett: "Japanese Food Is the Worst... Never Eating It Again"

Due to Preferred Tastes Like Hamburgers and Candy
Also Previously Declared "I Will Never Eat Japanese Food in My Life"

Warren Buffett, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, known as the "Sage of Omaha," has recently started investing in Japanese companies, but according to the U.S. economic media outlet Business Insider on the 23rd (local time), he seems to show little interest in "Japanese cuisine" itself.

According to the media, Buffett recently visited Japan and met with representatives of the five major Japanese trading companies (Mitsubishi, Mitsui, Itochu, Marubeni, Sumitomo).

Earlier, on the 12th, Buffett gave an interview to Japan's Nihon Keizai Shimbun, in which he described the Japanese trading companies as "companies that will survive for the next 100 years, or even forever."

However, the media added that it is highly likely that Buffett did not taste Japan's famous delicacies due to his peculiar taste preferences.

In fact, Buffett is known for having a limited palate. Even at the age of 92 this year, he still prefers McDonald's for breakfast and reportedly consumes five cans of Coca-Cola, candy, and vanilla ice cream sprinkled with cookie crumbs daily.

In 1989, he even declared that he would "never eat Japanese food for the rest of his life." At that time, during a visit to Japan, he was served a high-end Japanese course meal consisting of 15 dishes but left everything uneaten because he could not bring himself to eat raw sashimi.

Warren Buffett, Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, eating ice cream.
Photo by Yonhap News

This anecdote is also detailed in the book "Snowball" by the famous American journalist Alice Schroeder. At that time, Buffett was treated to sushi by the late Akio Morita, former chairman of Sony, but reportedly ate nothing except the bread roll.

He later said, "(Japanese food) was the worst," adding, "I have tried such food before, but this was by far the worst. I will never eat Japanese food again."

Meanwhile, Buffett's interest in Japanese stocks continues to grow. Recently, through his investment company Berkshire Hathaway, he increased his stake in the five major Japanese trading companies to 7.4%.

Buffett has been investing in the five major Japanese trading companies since 2020. Especially, these companies recorded unprecedented profits as global raw material prices soared due to the Russia-Ukraine war.