What Kato Transport does

Kato Transport (加藤運輸有限会社) is a Japanese private logistics company founded in 1979/1980 and headquartered in Matsudo, Chiba Prefecture, operating as the core entity of the Kato Transport Group. The company provides integrated logistics services across four main business lines: (1) general transportation and logistics including charter trucking, dedicated vehicle assignment, and inter-facility trunk-line transport; (2) temperature-controlled cold chain transport and storage for fresh produce, chilled foods, and frozen foods; (3) manufacturing, sales, and recycling of plastic products (PE bags, stretch film) through Vietnam operations (Nam Dinh Kato Co., Ltd.) and domestic recycling facilities; and (4) specialty transport services including theatrical/stage equipment for national tours and ADVAN-branded tire service for Yokohama Rubber at motorsports events (Super GT, Super Formula, All Japan Rally Championship). The group operates 570+ vehicles and 15+ facility locations across Japan spanning from Hokkaido to Kyushu, with approximately 290 employees and total warehouse floor area exceeding 28,000 square meters.

The company's revenue model is primarily transactional freight fees based on distance, cargo volume, and transport type, supplemented by hardware sales of plastic products manufactured in Vietnam and Malaysia (via import partners HPC, ST Polymer, VIPACO, and AAB Harvest) and recycling service revenue from converting agricultural polyethylene waste into recycled pellets. GTM is direct B2B with corporate customers through dedicated sales contact (phone/email), with a corporate website serving as the top-of-funnel channel. Customer segments include manufacturing companies (integrated logistics from production to delivery), food service (notably a 210-store restaurant chain), retail and distribution (supermarkets, home centers, drug stores), and event/motorsports clients. The company is currently undergoing civil rehabilitation proceedings filed October 25, 2024, with a sponsor contract signed with Honnei Holdings Co., Ltd. in May 2025 and the logistics business scheduled to transfer to its subsidiary Satsuki Transport on October 1, 2025.

Name

Kato Transport

Legal name

加藤運輸有限会社

Website

https://kato-unyu.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Kato Transport is a Japanese private logistics company (Matsudo, Chiba) providing integrated transportation, cold chain fresh produce logistics, plastics manufacturing/recycling via Vietnam, and specialty transport for motorsports and theatrical events, currently undergoing civil rehabilitation with a planned business transfer to Honnei Holdings' Satsuki Transport.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Logistics Services

NAICS

Transportation and Warehousing (48-49)

SIC

Trucking & Courier Services (No Air) (4210)

akta.pro primary industry

Restaurant & Catering Cold Delivery (TLAAAJAB)

Keywords

• Cold chain logistics
• Charter trucking services
• Fresh produce transport
• Cold storage warehousing
• Waste plastic recycling

Headquarters

HQ city

Matsudo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices15 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Transportation and Logistics Services: Core logistics business providing charter transport, spot charter, inter-facility trunk line transport, dedicated enterprise transport, and cold temperature transport. Revenue from freight fees based on distance, cargo volume, and transport type.
2. Fresh Produce Cold Chain Logistics: Temperature-controlled storage and transport of fresh vegetables, chilled foods, frozen foods, and chilled goods. Includes picking and inventory management services.
3. Manufacturing and Sales - Plastic Products: Manufactures and sells plastic bags, garbage bags, and stretch film through Vietnam factory operations. Imports and distributes PE resin bags from Vietnam and Malaysia factories.
4. Recycling Services: Collects used agricultural polyethylene and stretch film, processes into recycled pellets for plastic recycling industry raw materials. Contributes to resource conservation and CO2 emission reduction.
5. Electrolyzed Hydrogen Water Products: Export of Trim Ion water ionizers to Vietnam (Hanoi, Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh) through real estate developer channels. Domestic sales in Japan as medical equipment.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Kato Transport provides integrated logistics services spanning charter trucking, dedicated contract vehicles, inter-facility trunk line transport, and temperature-controlled cold chain distribution for fresh produce, chilled, and frozen foods using a fleet of 284 owned vehicles plus 28,000+ sqm of refrigerated warehouse space across Japan. The company also manufactures and distributes PE plastic bags through its Vietnam subsidiary Nam Dinh Kato, recycles agricultural polyethylene waste into reusable pellets, and operates niche specialized transport for theatrical stage equipment and Yokohama Rubber motorsports tire service events.

Product overview

Kato Transport is a near-future logistics company offering integrated services from manufacturing to import/export, transportation, and delivery. The core offerings consist of: (1) Transportation and Logistics Services providing charter trucks, dedicated vehicles, trunk routes, and temperature-controlled transport; (2) Fresh Produce Transport and Storage with temperature-controlled storage for fresh vegetables, chilled and frozen foods; (3) Manufacturing, Sales and Recycling division producing PE plastic bags and garbage bags in Vietnam, manufacturing stretch film, and recycling agricultural polyethylene waste into reusable pellets; and (4) electrolyzed hydrogen water products (Trim Ion purifiers) exported to Vietnam. The company also operates Kato Trading Co., Ltd. as a subsidiary handling PE plastic bag imports from Vietnam and Malaysia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Named customers7 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Nam Dinh Kato Co., Ltd. (Vietnam)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2010Vietnam-based manufacturing subsidiary established in 2010 with capital of US$800,000. Additional investment of US$200,000 made in 2011. Serves as overseas manufacturing base for plastic bag production and recycling operations.
• 加藤運輸グループ企業 (Kato Transport Group Companies)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGroup companies: Yamada Unyuten Co., Ltd. (absorbed 2005), Yamaoka Sanyu Co., Ltd. (absorbed 2006), Yamanashi Haiso Limited (joined 2013), Kato Trading Co., Ltd. (established 2007), Nakajima Co., Ltd. (absorbed 2003), Relief Co., Ltd.
• ベトナム工場 HPC社 (Vietnam Factory - HPC Co., Ltd.)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVietnamese manufacturing partner producing PE resin bags. HPC supplies 50% of Kato Trading's import volume. Relationship established in 2004.
• マレーシア ST POLYMER社 (Malaysia - ST Polymer Co., Ltd.)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMalaysian manufacturing partner for PE resin bags. ST Polymer supplies 20% of Kato Trading's import volume. Relationship started in 2005.
• ベトナム VIPACO社 (Vietnam - VIPACO Co., Ltd.)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVietnamese manufacturing partner. VIPACO supplies 10% of Kato Trading's import volume. Relationship established in 2012.
• ベトナム AAB HARVEST社 (Vietnam - AAB Harvest Co., Ltd.)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVietnamese manufacturing partner. AAB Harvest supplies 20% of Kato Trading's import volume. Relationship established in 2013.
• 横浜ゴム株式会社 (Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd.)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMotorsports tire service partnership. Kato Transport operates ADVAN-colored dedicated vehicles for Yokohama Rubber at Super GT, Super Formula, and All Japan Rally Championships events.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Senko Group Holdings: Japanese logistics company with strong domestic trucking, warehousing, and distribution operations. Comparable to Kato in providing integrated logistics services including dedicated transport contracts.
• Sagawa Express: Major Japanese parcel delivery and logistics company with nationwide B2B network. Comparable as a domestic Japanese logistics peer with direct enterprise contract capabilities and dedicated fleet operations.
• Yamato Transport: Japan's largest door-to-door parcel delivery and logistics company. Operates a massive owned fleet serving B2B and B2C customers nationwide, directly comparable to Kato's asset-heavy charter and dedicated transport model in the Japanese market.
• Yokorei Co., Ltd. Japanese cold storage and refrigerated logistics specialist operating nationwide warehouse network. Comparable to Kato's refrigerated warehousing and cold chain transport business serving food distribution customers.
• Seino Holdings: One of Japan's largest trucking companies specializing in commercial freight and dedicated corporate transport. Directly comparable to Kato's charter trucking and dedicated enterprise vehicle assignments.
• Maruha Nichiro Logistics: Specialized cold chain logistics provider for seafood, frozen, and chilled foods in Japan. Directly comparable to Kato's temperature-controlled fresh produce and frozen food transport and storage capabilities.
• Fukuyama Transporting: Major Japanese trucking company with nationwide network serving manufacturing, retail, and food distribution customers. Comparable to Kato in serving enterprise logistics customers with dedicated fleet capabilities.
• Konoike Transport: Japanese logistics company with strong cold chain and food logistics capabilities. Directly comparable to Kato's fresh produce, chilled, and frozen transport and storage business.

Broad incumbents

• LOGISTEED (Hitachi Transport System): Major Japanese third-party logistics provider with comprehensive supply chain solutions. Comparable as a broad incumbent offering overlapping logistics and warehousing services to enterprise customers.
• Nippon Express: Japan's largest logistics company with global operations covering trucking, warehousing, air, and ocean freight. Operates broadly in the same logistics space as Kato but at vastly greater scale across all transport modes.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kato Transport